Salvage
by moonswirl
Summary: Gleekathon, days 1262 through 1350 (alternating; Fri-Sun-Tue): While Artie tries to uncover the mystery of a face from the past, Sam Evans' future collides with that of the Doctor & Rose Tyler - DW/Glee crossover series #3, sequel to Padra's Run
1. Here She Comes Again

_Started my daily ficlets to make the hiatus pass, then decided to keep going with a 2nd cycle, and then a 3rd, 4th, etc through 60th cycle. Now cycle 61!_

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**"Salvage"  
Doctor Who: 9th Doctor, Rose Tyler  
Glee: Sam Evans, Artie Abrams, Schuester & New Directions  
Original character: Gemma Lucas/Ginny Harrison  
Doctor Who/Glee crossover series #3  
sequel to "Padra's Run"**

**1. Here She Comes Again**

_Lima, Ohio – January 2012_

There was still something in the air in the halls of McKinley these days. Maybe it was a residual of Mr. Schuester's proposing to Miss Pillsbury, but there was something like positivity hanging around, and they were not complaining by any means. For his part, Artie was had no problem taking this in stride. He had almost forgotten about the moment, small as it had been, a few weeks ago. Then the word had come about that a certain substitute teacher had returned among them.

This was only her second posting here, and he had only been aware of her through word of mouth, he hadn't actually seen her until the very last day, and only for a few seconds. But a few seconds was all he had needed to know he had seen that face before. Except when he had known her, her name was Gemma, not Ginny Harrison.

He had only been a kid at the time, but he hadn't been so young that he couldn't remember a face, especially for where he had known her and how. The crazy thing was she looked exactly the same as she did then, although maybe it wasn't so crazy, considering the company she kept.

Only now she was here, and he was sure it was her. He had no way of knowing whether she would come back ever again, whatever she had come to do was probably done and now she would be gone forever.

If she was back at McKinley though, then it changed everything. And he had to know for sure.

By his best guess, he had gone to check out whether she might be around the principal's office, and he was proven to have made the right call before long, spotting her come back out through the glass doors. He watched her stand there, a folder in hand, and a frown on her face as she read through it.

There was no way he was wrong. That was her; that was the woman he had met when he was eight years old, the one who travelled with the Doctor.

The moment she had looked up vaguely in his direction, he had wheeled out of sight. It had been instinct, but for now he chose to listen to it. She should be here for a few days at least. He would regroup, figure out what his plan might be.

X

Sometimes she did almost trip when she had to give her name. She had lived as Ginny Harrison for over a month now, ever since she had been sent here. It was one thing for her to get sent in to one time or another to achieve something, but this half of her task was not the easiest thing to work out, because her name was not Ginny Harrison, and she did not live in Lima.

They would have been hard-pressed to find any proof of her existence. As far as her cover went, she had no concerns; the Doctor was very thorough that way. There was plenty of information for her to maintain a regular life for as long as she required. But then if they had gone looking for Gemma Lucas, then they would have been in for something of a surprise, and then all of this would have been for naught.

Of course at the moment, the idea of having to leave did not seem like the worst one, especially as she saw where her posting was now taking her. After her stint as the home economics teacher, she was going to have to muster up the energy to pose as something even worse… a gym teacher. She had half a mind to call the Doctor, kindly decline, and let this trusty vortex manipulator carry her off to some resort three galaxies and four millennia away.

She would have thought that, after her task with Sugar, with Padra, she would move right along to whatever needed to be done next. Except, according to the Doctor, what needed to be done next was nothing at all, nothing but doing… nothing. She needed to stay right where she was, live as Ginny Harrison, waiting for the next time she would get sent in to teach at McKinley. It apparently did not matter that she could simply travel forward in time in the blink of an eye, a point she had regretted making as soon as she had begun to receive the long and specific reasons why she did need to stay.

She had spent these last few weeks existing as Ginny while making the effort of not being so obvious that certain people would get to do much talking to her if they should happen to see her. When the call had finally come for her to return to McKinley, she had all but jumped at the opportunity. There was only so much she could do in her apartment before she lost her mind.

Now as she walked through the doors of the gym and saw all the boys looking back at her, she was re-evaluating her previous claim. Maybe it wasn't too late to flee.

Hearing some laughter to the side, she had looked and spotted him in the corner, standing around with a few other boys. Sam Evans… She didn't know too much about him yet, not over here, not now, but he wasn't precisely her concern at this point. If there was one small comfort about this particular task, it was that, unlike with Sugar, there was one thing she wouldn't have to worry about: There was no way that Sam would ever recognize her; he hadn't met her yet.

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	2. Millenium

**"Salvage"**

**2. Millenium**

_Cardiff, Wales – in the year 2033_

Sam Evans had gotten into a cab outside the airport, and for a while it was hard not to play tourist. He would be forty within a couple of years, but this was his first time in Europe, and it wasn't even a vacation, not in the conventional sense of the word. All he had to go on was a time and a place, but he was too busy looking out the windows, seeing what was around him. Maybe it wasn't about where he was, or where he was going… it was what he was hoping to find there.

X

_Inside the TARDIS_

There was little to do while they waited for the fuel up to be done, and after a few close calls on their last trip, the Doctor decided the best use of that time would be to show Rose a few tricks of the trade.

"No, that's wrong," he told her, standing across the controls from her.

"You can tell from all the way over there?" she frowned, looking down at the sonic screwdriver in her hands. From the moment he had placed it there, she'd had this smile on her face like she'd been handed something so precious and strange.

"Yes, now fix the setting," he pointed with a nod.

"I did. I fix the setting, and you tell me I've got it wrong, so I fix it again, and it's all the same," she listed off, trying not to sound too frustrated. "What would happen if I pointed this at you now?" she asked, squinting at him.

"Well, we are indoors," he looked around. Rose stared at him, then back down to the screwdriver. She had barely done anything when she heard him clear his throat; she'd gotten it right.

"Do you mind if I pop out for a minute?" she handed the screwdriver back to him and he stood straighter.

"To do what?"

"I'm hungry, thought I'd get some chips," she moved toward the doors.

"Oh, chips," he replied. She smirked to herself.

"Do you want some?" she asked, pulling the door open.

She had barely had the time to register the presence of the man standing just outside the police box. The shock had caused her to react, and the next thing she knew her fist had flown out and hit him square in the face. The pain it caused her was followed with the surprise of seeing him fall back, unconscious.

"Rose?" the Doctor came running, peering down. "What have you done?"

"He was just there, I had no idea, I…" she swallowed back the feeling in her hand, holding it in the other.

There was the sound of a tone, back at the controls, and the Doctor looked back at once. "What?" he dashed back.

"What are you doing?" Rose asked, jumping past the man's legs to go look after him. He was still out, which surprised her most of all, staring at her hand.

She could see the Doctor, doing some thing or another, she couldn't figure out what it was. Whatever it was, he had completely forgotten about her and the man, from what she could tell. So she focused on the man, crouching next to him, tapping his cheek, giving his shoulder a shake.

"Sir? Are you alright?" she tried to wake him, looking around. It was a miracle no one had seen them and come running. It could have become an even bigger problem than it already was. "Please wake up," she begged. When he began to stir, she gasped, then got back on task. "Yes, that's it, you're alright."

When his eyes began to open, he blinked for a moment, but his eyes fixed on something… Was he looking at the TARDIS?

"D… Doctor?" he asked, and she sat up.

"What did you say?" Rose breathed, looking back inside; the Doctor was still too busy.

"Doctor…" the man repeated, more confident this time.

"We have to go, there's a distress call," the Doctor had finally appeared just inside the doors, and she looked to him. "And you won't believe from where."

"Doctor, the man…" she started.

"Is he alright?" the Doctor asked, noticing he was waking up.

"Do you know him?" Rose pointed down, and he looked, frowning.

"No," he shook his head.

"Are you sure?"

"When you get to be as old as I am, remembering a face can still save your life. Trust me, I've never seen him."

"But I think he has. He saw the… the TARDIS," she whispered, just in case, "And he called for you." That got his attention.

"He did?"

"He said 'Doctor.' Twice." The Doctor stared closer. He still could not recall seeing him ever. Even if the man had aged, he would have still recognized him… Of course when it came to him, there were certain factors that could have explained it. But then there were other issues at hand.

"Fine then, help me carry him in," he reached for the man's feet.

"Carry him in?" Rose repeated, nevertheless taking up his shoulders.

"That's it, set him down and shut the doors," the Doctor instructed her. As soon as the doors had shut, he went to the controls and they were taking off.

"But you don't know who he is…"

"There is a distress call, and for some reason, he was right there, at that specific time… He's coming, and we'll sort it out when we get to Mesphoria." She stopped, and he turned a smile to her.

"Mesphoria, you told me about it, that's… the Child Queen," she recalled the anecdote he had told her, when they'd had young Padra on the TARDIS with them.

"It is, and she needs help. Told you I'd take you there some day, now see how things have a way of happening?"

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	3. Mesphoria

**"Salvage"**

**3. Mesphoria**

_The Eastern Shores of Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

One year ago, the shores would have been overrun with Mesphorite, celebrating the annual baths. Young and old would come and partake of the springs, to receive its gifts and to give the thanks they owed. But now things had changed. Now they were in trouble.

Rada could see them all down there, circling the tunnel's entrance, trying to find some solution even though none truly existed, not without some external help. But they did everything they could; and she wanted to do the same, if only they would let her…

She felt a hand at her shoulder and she startled, turning around. "Let me go!" she started to protest, but then she saw who it was and she stood down.

"What do you think you're doing?" Mersi was the youngest of the Queen's Guard, and Rada had taken to looking up to her.

"Please, I just want to help." The guard sighed and led the girl along from her post up on the hill overlooking the activity below.

"You are fourteen years old, this is no place for you."

"But I'm smaller than the others, you could use me," she insisted.

"Not if it means risking your life. Just go home."

"Fine, I won't go down, but I can do other things." Mersi made her stop, looking at her. "Please…"

"I know what this means to you, but trust me on this, the best place you can be right now is far away."

"Mersi?" Rada's gaze had gone over her shoulder, back to the top of the hill.

"What is it?" she sighed.

"There's something, it just appeared," the girl pointed. Mersi turned and looked. For a second she had expected it would be nothing, but it was certainly not nothing. A blue box now stood atop the hill where there had been nothing a moment ago.

Recollection struck her and caught her breath in one go. She'd seen it once before. She was only a child then, but she had heard stories since. And since she had been raised to one of the Queen's Guard, those stories had taken on a new meaning, because now they came with a task.

"Rada, I beg you, just go home. Now!" she told the girl before taking off at a run.

"Where are you going?" Rada called after her.

"Get on home!"

She had always been a fast runner. Her legs were not the longest, but her strides were true. It took her ten minutes to reach the palace.

"Ada!" The old maid was the first person she encountered; she couldn't have hoped for better.

"Oh, by all the spirits, what's happened now?" the woman asked, seeing the guard there, panting and holding to her side.

"Where is she? I need to see her, it's urgent," Mersi managed to ask, far from forgetting herself.

"Stay as you are and catch your breath, I'll fetch her right away."

"Quicken your step now, Ada," the guard told her, and the maid scurried off with all that she could give.

Nothing was as it was meant to be, hadn't been for some time, but there were still things they could all count on. Ada could count that she would find her lady up in the library. From the windows there, she could see the furthest out from the palace; she'd loved that view since she was so little.

She found her sat there, hunched over the ledge, just as she had for hours and hours when she had been little. This was where she came to be the girl she had been before they had ever put a crown on her head.

"Forgive me," Ada spoke; now it was her who was winded. "You're needed, right away, my lady," she bowed her head as she'd always done.

"What is it?" she stood, coming to her.

"Mersi, downstairs."

As she had exited the library, the two guards standing outside fell in step with her and the maid. They found the young woman waiting for them.

"My lady," Mersi bowed her head and took a knee.

"What is it?" the Queen asked, and Mersi stood again.

"It appeared, my lady, down on the shores. The blue box, the same one."

"Oh, spirits protect us…" Ada sighed, putting her hands together and shaking her head. But the Queen smiled.

"Of course it would be him. Ada, have two rooms readied? As I recall, he doesn't usually travel alone."

"Yes, my lady," the maid went on her way.

"Dania, assemble the guard, we will march out to meet our incoming guests," the Queen addressed the head of her Queen's Guard.

"Yes, my lady," the woman looked to the man who'd been standing outside the library with her and they headed off to gather the rest of their group. This left Mersi alone to stay by the ruler's side. "I never thought I'd see him again, but here he is, at our hour of need," she breathed out.

"Do you really believe he can help us, my lady?" The Queen took a breath, quietly asking herself that very question. Regardless of the outcome, she knew what she believed.

"I believe if anyone can, that will be him," she promised her guard.

The whole of the Queen's Guard counted eight in total, Dania included. They marched out in two rows, four ahead of the Queen and four behind her. This was much less for protection than it was for maintaining the order of things. The Child Queen was beloved on Mesphoria. The people stood with her, as she stood with them.

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	4. Welcome to the Team

**"Salvage"**

**4. Welcome to the Team**

_Inside the TARDIS_

As their surprise guest was waking up, Rose watched him, wondering who he could have been, and how he knew the Doctor. It was entirely possible, with how old he was, that he would have met loads of other people, but he couldn't place him, and that added to the mystery.

"Are you alright?" she asked him. "I didn't mean to hit you, but you were… I'm sorry," she told him, helping him sit up.

"It's alright, don't worry about it," he told her, touching his face where she had hit him. It looked like he might have a bruise for a while. She only briefly thought about this, as she realized something else.

"You're American?"

"Born and raised," he confirmed. "Sam Evans," he introduced himself, holding out his hand. She took it.

"Rose Tyler, nice to meet you. When you started waking up, you said Doctor…" she approached the subject carefully.

"I did?" he asked, pausing for a moment. "My head was kind of spinning, then I saw you. I must have thought that was what you were, a doctor," he explained.

Rose looked up to the Doctor, and if he had an 'oops' face, maybe that was what he was giving her. The TARDIS gave a shudder, signalling their arrival, and he moved toward the man still half laid out on the ground. "No, that would be me, I'm afraid. I'm the Doctor."

"Doctor who?" Sam spoke as he turned and saw him.

"Just the Doctor," he replied, crouching. "Thing is, Sam, there was a bit of a mix up, and now we've had to take you with us."

"To go where?" Sam asked.

"Far, very, very far, and then add about three hundred and eighty-six more 'very,'" the Doctor told him.

"This is a ship, a space ship," Rose revealed. Sam looked from one to the other, like he was about to laugh. But then he kept looking, beyond them and all around him. He saw the interior of the TARDIS, and he didn't stop looking as he worked to get up, almost stumbling for a moment before getting a hold of the railing.

"Are you serious?"

"You don't even know the half of it, and we have to make this brief. Rose, you've met Rose, she's human. I'm the Doctor, and I'm not. This is my ship, it's called the TARDIS, it travels in space, specifically the planet Mesphoria at this time. We're responding to a distress call, which means unfortunately I can't take you back at the moment. Any questions?"

"A few," Sam blinked.

"And we will be happy to answer them, now out through those doors and please don't wander off," the Doctor moved past him and pulled the doors open. Sam turned to Rose.

"If I were you, I'd step outside and look at the ship again," she smirked, following the Doctor out. Sam hesitated, but he went, and as his feet landed on a grassy hill, he turned and found the wide open ship, here, looked like a blue wooden box, not even as wide as the width of his arms. He touched it, turned to the pair of them. "See?" Rose told him.

"Yeah…" he continued to touch it, like he wasn't completely sure. Turning about, he could not deny they no longer were in Cardiff. The hill overlooked the ocean, with a water so clear, it didn't seem to belong with the grass along the hill and growing down towards the shore, but as a whole it did make for an impressive sight.

"What do you suppose is going on down there?" the Doctor asked, more concentrated on the group standing near and around a wide hole.

"Doctor?" Rose spoke, and again there was something new for them to discover, as they saw what she saw: they had company.

They came marching up the hill from behind the TARDIS, and the trio moved around the ship. There were eight or so of them, from what they could see, and the closer they got, the more was visible. All of them wore matching uniforms, which included something almost skirt like, for the men and women both. This was hardly the thing that would concern them in the end. Their skin was green, a tone that reminded them of the sea, and he thought he could see specks of gold here and there. As they came closer still, something else became evident: they were giant. Sam would estimate their height averaged around ten feet tall. His neck craned up, as did the Doctor and Rose's.

"Hello," the Doctor raised his hand and bowed his head with a smile. The twin rows had parted, and the ninth of their group, thus far unseen, stepped forward. The woman was easily two feet shorter than the rest of her group, though still two feet taller than the three she was coming toward.

"Doctor?" she hesitated. He approached, giving a short gesture that came off halfway between a salute and a curtsey. "Is that really you?" she asked.

"Still me," he promised.

"When I saw you last, what did you tell me before getting back on your ship?"

"I told you holding on to that crown didn't have to change you. Did it?" he asked with a smile, and she did the same.

"Not one bit."

"Mind you some things did change," he looked at her. Last time he had seen her she was all of ten years old, but he would put her at twenty-six years old now.

"You're one to talk," she pointed out.

"They still call you the Child Queen?"

"They do, for… different reasons now," she looked to her Queen's Guard, towering over her.

"Well, please, allow me to make the introductions. Rose Tyler, Sam Evans, of Earth, you stand before Orielle, crowned ruler of all Mesphoria. So how can we help?"

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	5. Do It For a Friend

**"Salvage"**

**5. Do It For a Friend**

_Lima, Ohio – January 2012_

He'd faked a request to go to the bathroom just close enough to the end of class that his teacher wouldn't tell him to 'just hold it' and at the same time could be excused if he did happen to be gone for the remainder of the period, which was what would happen. Now he was waiting outside the gym, until that class would let out, because at the moment, it was being taught by a woman they knew by one name, but he knew by another. He was positive that was her, and the only way to know for sure was to get a closer look at her, or better yet to get a chance to talk to her.

It felt odd to stand back this way, in attempting to approach her, when really back in the day they'd had this whole adventure, them two and the Doctor. Looking at her, no one would know that there was anything out of the ordinary, except between the memory he had and the woman he saw now, there was a solid nine years… and she looked exactly the same. If it was her though, wouldn't she have come to him? There were possibilities why she might not, and he was well aware of them, he…

"Hey, what are you doing here?" He'd been distracted and didn't realize the class was already coming out until Sam came up to him. Artie tried not to look to conspicuous.

"Sam, hey… How was class?" he casually asked.

"We've got a substitute, so you know," Sam shrugged.

"Yes, I do. I do know," Artie confirmed. "Which, uh, which sub did you guys get?" he asked.

"It's that new one, Sugar had her last month, remember? Her name's Ginny Harrison," Sam had to stop and think about it for a moment.

"Oh, right, yeah, I remember. So how did that go?"

"The guys were kind of all over the place, they kept looking at her, so we didn't get much done."

Artie made like he was listening, nodding along as Sam spoke, though his eyes were past him, minding the door. Somehow his attention must have shifted back to Sam for a moment, because then he was looking back and the teacher was in the hall, striding away. He muttered under his breath, and it made Sam look where he'd been looking. When he turned back to Artie, he had this smirk on his face, which made him sit back in his chair.

"What?"

"I get what's happening," Sam told him. "You've got a crush on her, is that it?" he leaned in. _At this point it's better than the truth, isn't it?_ "Isn't she a little old for you though?"

"She's not that old," Artie cut in with a defence. "I mean she's, what, twenty-seven? Twenty-eight? That's not so…" he played innocent, almost shy. "Please don't tell anyone about this?" he 'pleaded.' Sam chuckled. "Just between us."

"Yeah, you got it," Sam promised him. _Maybe I can use this… use him._

"Actually, you might be able to help me with something," he opened.

"Sure, help you with what?"

"I was wondering, since you're in gym class with her, maybe you could, I don't know, keep an eye out for me?" Sam looked unsure. "Not stalking or anything, but you could talk to her, get to know some things I could use, information about her."

"I don't know, man, it seems kind of…"

"Kind of what?"

"Why don't you just talk to her? Again, I feel like I have to bring up the age thing. Isn't it illegal?"

"I'm just humoring this… fancy. It's not like I'm going to do anything about it, clearly. Plus if I keep having to make excuses to get out of class just to see her, people are going to start noticing and I'm going to get in trouble. You have access to her that I don't, just… talk to her, you know?" Sam sighed, considering the request before shrugging.

"Fine, alright, I guess I can give it a shot."

"Thank you," Artie bowed his head.

"Hey, it's your funeral. I'm pretty sure this is going to end badly."

"Understood," he promised.

"See you in Glee Club?" Sam asked before heading off, and Artie confirmed it.

This would at least give him an edge where he didn't have it. Plus she didn't know Sam, so she wouldn't suspect anything. He wasn't ready to flat out go up to her and ask her if she was Gemma, just as he believed she was. It almost made sense that it would be, because when he'd met her, when he was little, he always had this impression, like she knew more than she was letting on. Maybe that was because she had already met him… here, now. If that was the case though, then this version of Gemma as she was, she wouldn't know him yet.

But that was only one of his theories, and with every moment that passed it seemed he got a new one, so the possibilities were as endless as they got. All of them circled back to the very basic facts. One of them was that this woman who was calling herself Ginny Harrison was in fact called Gemma Lucas. At some point now or later or earlier, she would travel with an alien called the Doctor, and she would take a sad eight-year-old boy on a wild ride.

Another fact, and this was the one that gave him real pause, was that if she was going to be there, then maybe the Doctor would be as well. And he knew that sometimes they only travelled, but other times they took care of problems. So if Gemma was here, pretending to be someone else, for so long… then what on Earth were they up to?

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	6. What We Lost

**"Salvage"**

**6. What We Lost**

_The Eastern Shores of Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

The Queen's Guard walked at a wider interval, allowing the new arrivals to walk in the center, with the Queen. The Doctor was by her side, while Rose and Sam were right behind them.

"I had a feeling I'd be seeing you," Orielle looked to the Doctor with a smile. The last time they had seen each other, some regenerations ago, she was just shy of meeting his height. Now, although she was not as tall as most Mesphorite, she was eight feet tall, so by his side she didn't look like any 'child' Queen. "I'm glad it was. It's been far too long, Doctor."

"Longer for me than it's been for you," he assured her.

"The years have been long," she breathed. "The last ones especially. And now…"

"What's happened?"

"Two years ago, there was an earthquake. There were many deaths, many injured. But this was even before we became aware of the consequences," she explained. They had come to a stop, and it took a moment for the two humans to grasp why this might have been necessary for the Doctor, it was instantaneous.

"The springs, they've dried up…" he breathed.

"The springs?" Rose asked, and the Queen turned to her.

"Mesphoria has long been blessed with certain gifts," she explained as the Doctor continued to examine the rock formation.

"What kinds of gifts?" Sam asked, looking up at her.

"Mermaids," the Doctor answered instead, sitting on the stones. "You've heard of them, yes?"

"Of course we have," Rose shrugged. "But they're not…"

"Not on Earth, and not quite the way you'll think of them. Their feet and legs join underwater, gives the impression of a tail the way they swim." Rose looked back to the Queen's Guard, the skirt-looking uniforms; now she knew why.

"This is something that is ours on its own, but then there are the springs," Orielle went on. "Exposed to its waters, it allows us to breathe below the surface just as we do above it."

"And they were here?" Sam pointed to the rocks.

"The spring waters originate from a layer above the planet's core," Mersi spoke up, and Sam turned, craning his neck further. He blinked; she did, too, before getting back to her point. "They reach springs like this all around Mesphoria by conduits, but when the earthquake happened, the conduits were ruptured, disrupted."

"We thought it might happen, and teams were dispatched to collect what remained before it drained or dried away. It was kept in reserves and shared in moderation. There are certain things that need to continue for the well-being of Mesphorite, but without the spring waters…"

"And now they've run out?" Rose guessed.

"Not yet, but it will, sooner or later, and we've been trying to repair the conduits ever since. The problem is we need to get to them, and without the waters…" the Queen explained.

"Is that what the tunnel's for?" Sam asked.

"Tunnel?" Rose asked having assumed it was no more than a hole.

"We've been calling for help for some time already. And then we came in contact with a man named Wallis Cod. He was able to provide us with a creation of his, which could be the answer to our problems."

"What kind of creation?" the Doctor stood.

"A piece of technology, to create a sort of pocket over the spring water layer which would allow us to go down and repair the conduits. The tunnel gets us to the pocket," Mersi explained.

"I didn't see anything like that when we saw the tunnel," Rose pointed out.

"The generator also functions to keep the pocket stable once it's active. We were preparing for our first descent. When the incident occurred, the generator malfunctioned, and somehow broke apart. The parts fell down the tunnel. The pocket is holding at this time, but it's getting weaker. With the generator's pieces down there, once it ruptures…" Mersi shook her head.

"The only solution now would be to go down the tunnel, retrieve and reassemble the generator before it's too late, resume the stabilizing pulses. Some of it may require a finer, smaller hand than we have, and I will not send a child to do the job," the Queen promised.

"No, but someone like us," the Doctor could understand.

"The retrieval team is preparing, everything needs to be ready in time," Orielle insisted, and the Doctor observed her. Something wasn't right, something was missing.

"In time for what?" he asked, and she looked back to her Queen's Guard.

"We should return to the palace."

The walk back had been quiet. Sam and Rose, who had never been to Mesphoria, had the chance to bond as tourists of sort. He had never seen anything like this, which amused her to no end. He was nearly her mother's age, and for half a second she wondered if she might introduce them once they returned to Earth.

Once they arrived to the palace though, the Doctor had stepped back to them.

"I need to speak with the Queen for a moment. Don't wander off," he pointed to each of them.

"Is he serious?" Sam asked Rose.

"He is," she frowned. "Fine, we'll wait." The Doctor nodded, going back to Orielle.

"Can we have a word?"

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	7. What She Gave

**"Salvage"**

**7. What She Gave**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

With his companions left to their own – hopefully reasonable – devices, the Doctor had allowed the Queen to lead him into a private room where they could speak. Her guards remained posted at the door, as usual, and he gave them both a courteous smile before shutting the doors.

As he turned, he observed the still young ruler. She was right, the crown had not changed her. Looking at her, he could still see the girl she had been when he first met her. Calling her 'little' would not have had any point. Even at the age of ten she had nearly been at height with him. Now she was the tall one, but it was all a matter of perspective. She could have been eight feet or eight inches, and he could still see her for what she was.

She had been thrust into the position she was after illness had taken her father, Orin the Fair, as he'd been called. Her mother had already been dead since before Orielle could even remember her properly. If losing the only parent she'd ever known hadn't been bad enough, with no siblings either older or younger, she was the sole heir, the one true Queen of Mesphoria. She was also a child, and although she would have trustworthy council, they would look to her.

The TARDIS had found its way on the shores of Mesphoria quite by accident, and the Doctor had been taken in, believed to be a dangerous intruder. He had been brought before the Child Queen, for trial, no doubt. Instead, she had looked upon the strange man and decided she believed his story. Within time, he had been given release, and the Queen insisted he stay, and that he show her this ship of his. He could sense something about her, like urgency, the need to get out. And that was when it had happened, presented with a ship that travelled in time and in space, she had tempted fate and given the controls a spin. Before the Doctor could do a thing of it, they had landed on Earth, in a period he would have rather kept a young royal such as her away from.

He had managed to bring her back and, along the way, he had shown her that it didn't have to mean she had to stop being who she was, just because she had been crowned. If anything, it was in remaining who she was that she would become a greater asset to her people. And for what little he had seen of the Mesphorite so far, it seemed he had been right. The people loved their Queen.

"Would you like to play a game?" he asked, and she turned to look at him.

"Why do I have a feeling you're playing one already?" He smirked, coming up to her.

"It's just us, just you and little old me," the Doctor reminded her. He didn't have to ask or prod any further. The weight had already been enough.

"After the earthquake, I went down to the springs myself, helped them bottle up what we could of the water. I could see on their faces the same concerns that plagued me. What would happen once we ran out? As far away as that could be, now that we had the reserves, it would come someday, unless we found some way to repair the conduits and get the springs to flow once more."

"So you started looking for a solution," he guessed.

"I did," she nodded. "It wasn't so easy. The more time went by, the more attempts failed, it became clear that this would get worse before it got better. Nothing we tried worked, and it cost us precious reserves for nothing at all. That can't happen again. That's why when he came along and presented this plan, it was a miracle." The Doctor stared up at her.

"And who is 'he' exactly?" The Queen looked down. "This Wallis Cod you mentioned?"

"Yes."

"So what is the unedited version?" he asked. She took a few steps, thinking, then turned to face him.

"The generator came at a price, an agreement. He did not ask for any sort of property, didn't ask to be paid," she explained.

"He did ask for something though, didn't he?" She said nothing, but her eyes darting aside said 'yes.' "What did he ask for?"

"Me," she replied. "My hand in marriage."

"What happened to a nice sack of money?" the Doctor asked to no one as he sat down.

"Had it been any other circumstance, I might have found a way to negotiate, or plainly refuse. But, in case I haven't made the situation clear, we are in a desperate state. If he left and took his machine with him, I would have as good as condemned my people."

"So you accepted."

"I did. He was gracious enough to allow us a trial run, at the end of which I would be expected to carry on with the wedding."

"And then he will be King." The concept had never, ever been lost on her, and he could see how much of a sacrifice that had been for her to make. For however young she had been when she took the throne, she understood what it stood for, just as she'd seen her father exercise that power over their people. She wanted to be just as good as he was, and she had done it alone.

"When he comes here and sees what has happened, he will see this as defiance to our agreement. This will give him the power to demand my removal. He will receive all of Mesphoria on a platter." She would never have dreamed of showing herself so desperate before her people, but the Doctor was a friend, someone she could trust with something like this.

"He won't get a finger on it," he vowed, and she breathed.

"So you will help us."

"Did you ever have any doubt?"

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	8. Behind Closed Doors

**"Salvage"**

**8. Behind Closed Doors**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

Rose and Sam had been escorted into a larger sitting room and told to wait. For a time they did just this. Sam would look around the room with an amazement she was familiar with. That had been her, not so long ago. It was still her, with each new world they came upon, but there was something about the first time…

"Stay here," she told him then, getting up. He turned.

"Didn't the… the Doctor tell us to wait?"

"He did. But I won't be far, really," she insisted. Before he could stop her, she had slipped out of the room.

"Right," he sighed, turning back to the window. He still couldn't believe where he was.

He saw the reflection in the window just as it appeared, and he spun around just as she held a finger to her lips, took his arm, and dragged him into a corner behind curtains.

"Finally, I wasn't sure how I was going to ever get you alone for a minute," she whispered.

"Gemma, why didn't you say I was going to go with them?" he matched her tone.

"Do they know you know?" she asked.

"No, of course not. You told me not to say anything, so I didn't, but I…"

"Quiet, hang on," Gemma reached to cover his mouth and stop him talking. They waited while she listened. "Sorry, I thought I heard something," she pulled her hand away.

"The Doctor, how is that him? He didn't look like that when I met him. It's been twenty, twenty-one years, but I remember what he looked like and that wasn't it."

"I told you he wouldn't. Look, that's what he does, when he's about to die he can regenerate, which means his whole body changes. But that is the same man, I swear it is," she explained.

"And he hasn't met me yet."

"No, he hasn't."

"But I've met him, his future self."

"You have."

"And your future self, too," he went on, and she held up her hand. "I know, you told me not to say anything. This is kind of confusing."

"How do you think I feel?" she frowned.

A week earlier, he had been home, back in Lima, Ohio. He was going about his day, normal as any, when she had appeared, literally appeared out of thin air, in the middle of his store. He'd recognized her right away and pulled her into the back, thankful that no one had seen her. At first, he had been amazed to see her again, after all these years, but she had been quick to point out something, mainly that she wasn't the same Gemma he had known back when he was seventeen, that was still in the process of happening. She acted as though this was the first time she spoke to him, but he couldn't help wondering if that was true. He had very little to go on as far as time travel and how all that worked. He knew she had spent several months working as a substitute teacher at McKinley before he had really discovered what she was doing there. And if this was her past self, then the one he would have met all those years ago knew all about this trip to Mesphoria already.

But that wasn't what she'd told him back in his store. Instead, she had told him that, in a few days' time, he would need to head on over to Cardiff, in Wales, that there was a ticket with his name on it, waiting at the airport, and all he had to do was to show up and get on the plane. He was told where to go in Cardiff, and that he 'would know' when he had arrived to his destination. He'd also been told about how the Doctor would not look the same, and how he shouldn't talk about what he knew, all of that. He still didn't know why he'd accepted to go through with it. He had seen what the Doctor could do back then, and maybe that was it. Or maybe it was the chance of doing something more with his life, to see something new, something different.

"But what about her?" he asked.

"Who?"

"Rose, the one who's travelling with him."

"What about her?" Gemma looked around.

"She wasn't there when I met the Doctor, why's that?" The girl was half his age, not quite young enough to be his daughter but almost, and every time he looked at her, he had this feeling like he should be worried that she hadn't been there when he met the Doctor.

"There is no time to get into that right now," Gemma told him. "They'll come back looking for you soon, so just listen to me, okay? You have the instincts, I know you do, so use them, go with your gut, you know? They need help right now, and you're here. You could really help them, make a difference. Stop thinking about it all so much and embrace the situation."

"What about you?" he asked, and she smiled.

"I have a class to teach," she shrugged, reaching to her arm. The next moment, she was gone, and he was startled, blinking. He still wasn't used to that. He stood there, letting the moment go by, sink in, before he could emerge from behind his curtain.

As soon as he did, he found himself face to slightly-lower-than face with one of the Queen's Guard. He thought he'd heard them call her Mersi.

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	9. For Her Majesty

**"Salvage"**

**9. For Her Majesty**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

It was hard not to look at her, a solid four feet taller than him, and not feel at least a bit intimidated. "Hello," was the best he could do, staring up at her. Mersi looked at him, frowning, before reaching over him to peer behind the curtain. There was nothing to see, not anymore.

"What were you doing back there?"

_Well, you see, I was talking with a woman I met when I was seventeen, only she still looks the same as she did back then because, for her, almost no time has passed. Actually, she is even younger now than when I met her. She told me to get on a plane and fly to a city I'd never been to, so I could run into this alien called the Doctor, who I met also when I was seventeen, only he was a different man at the time._

If he ever told her that, she could have locked him up right away. He had to think of something else.

"I'll tell you, but can you keep it to yourself?" he asked.

"Why would I do that?" He had better work fast, if he didn't her to take him right to the Queen, or worse to the Doctor.

"I wouldn't want them knowing," he explained. "To be honest, being here, it's a lot for me to take in. I only just met the Doctor and Rose, and I had no idea there could be other worlds out there, with other species, and that it was possible to get there. Only now I'm here…" He knew he was starting to have her convinced when she crouched down, so they could see each other better. What he hadn't known was how much of a shock to the system it would be to see her face that much closer. She was observing him now, perhaps deciding whether he was telling her the truth or not.

"Your friend, the girl, we found her wandering about. What's her story?"

"She just said she was going to take a look around, I didn't know whether or not to stop her," he told her, and that was the truth.

"Well," she spoke after a moment. "If it makes you feel any better, I'm not so used to seeing your kind either," she bowed her head, with a hint of a smile.

"But you have seen others before?"

"I saw him, the Doctor, the last time he was here. Only back then he didn't look the same. I wouldn't have believed it if my lady didn't assure us it was him." _I know the feeling._ He couldn't tell her, not any of it, but his sympathy still telegraphed. "I'll take you to your friend now," she stood back up. As they walked, rather than keep silent, he looked to her again.

"How long have you been a guard? I only ask because the two of you seem to be about the same age."

"We are," Mersi confirmed. "We were born on the same year. When we were children, she would come to the village. This was before she was crowned, when her father ruled," she touched her heart at the mention of the old king. "She would come to the village, and she would play with us. Her father never remarried, never had any other children. He didn't want her growing up isolated and lonely."

"So you were friends?"

"We are," Mersi smiled. "After the King died, she continued to come. As I grew up, I knew I wanted to dedicate myself to her. Many of us did. I was chosen, and I've been one of her guards for seven years."

"Is it strange? To serve a friend?"

"No, I think it makes it easier. I know exactly the kind of person she is, and it's something worth protecting." When she stopped talking for a time, he looked up, trying to see her face. She was thinking about something, though what it might be, he couldn't tell.

"So what about the Doctor? You met him, didn't you?" His words had interrupted her, and she looked down to him.

"Met… The Doctor, you mean?" she asked, and he nodded. "I did," she replied. "When he came, the last time, I was only a child, but I still remember it like it was yesterday. The Queen was in the village. It was the first time she'd come after the King had passed. We all saw, when the blue box appeared. The guards, they had no idea what it was, and they put themselves before the Queen. But then the man came out, and he was not at all a threat. He was kind, and after he left, my lady was not so frightened anymore. When I saw the box had appeared again this morning, I knew we were saved."

By all he had seen so far, he could accept that these were good people and that they'd need help. Gemma had told him to try and give them that help. If he could be of any assistance, he would give it. That would mean lying to them on some details, but then he'd already been doing that, to all of them, even to Mersi. The fact was he had seen someone like them before, at least similar to them. He'd met a girl, twenty-one years ago, and she may not have been identical to them, but he could say without a doubt that she was Mesphorite like them. He remembered her being happy to see him, like she'd known him. Back then he'd had no idea who she was, but maybe this would be it, the time when they met. He'd heard of things coming 'full circle' before, but he'd never seen it as accurate as it was now.

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	10. The Good Doctor

___**This is a shift day. **There are two updates today._

* * *

**"Salvage"**

**10. The Good Doctor**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

Mersi had led Sam to what he guessed was a guest dining room of some sort. There he found Rose sitting at a table, eating from a plate they had brought her. Another plate was waiting, he assumed for him. The guard woman nodded for him to go along, and he watched her go before joining Rose at the table.

"Are you okay?" he asked her.

"I was on my way to get something to eat, when I…" she mimed the hit, and by the way she looked at his face he guessed she had left a mark on him. "This is not chips, but it's not half bad either, try it," she pointed to the plate. He picked up the utensil, which wasn't quite like the forks he was used to, but he imagined it served the same purpose.

"I don't know why, I thought they'd be bigger," he frowned.

"Why, because they are?" Rose asked.

"Well… yeah," he admitted. "Where did you go?"

"Not far. I didn't see anything, and then they found me and brought me here. They found out the Doctor came to help, so they decided to feed us." He was looking at one item on his plate, which looked halfway between a rice pudding and mashed potatoes, and she shook her head. "I wouldn't if I were you. Try this bit," she directed his fork. He tried a bite and was pleasantly surprised, which made Rose laugh.

"How do you get used to this?"

"You just do, I guess," she shrugged. "You come to a new world, it's not going to look like anything you're used to, so you have to try."

"Makes sense," he agreed. He gave himself the space of a few bites before getting around to asking what he wanted to ask. "So you've been doing this for a while then? Travelling, with him?"

"I suppose. It hasn't really been that long, actually."

"How'd you meet him?" The question made her smile.

"I met him, I'd say for you it was about twenty-seven, twenty-eight years ago," she counted, and he stared at her. "What, time travel," she reminded him.

"Right," he sat back, so she continued.

"He just… came out of nowhere, one night. There was this thing, a… a consciousness. It could animate plastic. I met the Doctor while he was looking into that. I thought he was… crazy, at first," she admitted. "Only then he wasn't. I helped him, and when it was all over, he offered to take me with him. How could I say no to this?" she smiled, taking another bite.

He tried to think about what he knew, from personal experience and from what he'd been told. He wasn't pretending that he completely understood this thing about regeneration, even after Gemma, and others, had testified to the fact that they had met this alien called the Doctor, and not all of them had seen the same one. It was one thing to be told that they were all the same person, but it was another to experience it. His own encounter with the Doctor, not this one here, was so many years away now, but he hadn't forgotten. If he had found himself in that man's presence, he would have accepted right away that he was in a good place, and that he could trust him. He did not know this man here, and though so far he seemed equally trustworthy, he had to know more. If this girl here had travelled with him, entrusted him with her safety, then she'd be the best one to ask.

"What's it like? What's… he like?" he went on, and she took a moment to think.

"You ask a lot of questions," she pointed out, and for a moment he thought she was on to him in some way. He played it like he hadn't even realized he was doing it.

"I'm sorry. It's just still a bit much to take, you know? One second I'm there, on Earth, and now I'm here. I need to know that I'm safe." She took this in, and she looked like she believed him.

"It can be a lot to take," she agreed. "Is it that there's someone you need to get back to?" she asked, reaching into her pocket. "I've got a phone if you need to call," she held it out to him. He looked at it. The model definitely looked like something from the years she'd mentioned earlier.

"No, it's fine, I don't… It's just me," he revealed, and she put the phone away.

"Oh. No wife, no girlfriend, or…" she asked slowly.

"No," he replied. "I have my parents, brother and sister, but they're back home, they think I'm on a trip to England."

"So if you didn't mention Wales, you'd definitely not want to bring up Mesphoria, would you?"

"Not really, no," he shook his head with a smirk and she laughed.

"Fair enough," she nodded. "As for the Doctor, all I can say is, if you ask me, there's no safer place than with him."

"So, no danger then?"

"Oh, no, there's definitely danger," she corrected. "But not the kind you had in mind. He helps people sometimes, when they need him."

"Like here."

"Yes. And sometimes that means that there'll be danger, but the Doctor will be there, and that counts for more than I could possibly say. Sometimes he can be a bit dark, closed off, but he has reasons." She'd left it off at that, so he could guess he shouldn't expect any kind of response from her on that particular subject.

All in all, from what she'd told him, he had come to the conclusion that he was where he should be. Even if it had been an earlier version of Gemma than the one he'd first known who had brought him here – if he had it all right, which frankly he wasn't sure he did – she had to know what she was throwing him into, so why would she put him in the hands of someone untrustworthy?

"So what does that taste like?" he pointed to another thing on his plate.

"I think that's what they call an acquired taste."

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	11. Into the Dark

_**This is a shift day. **There are two updates today._

* * *

**"Salvage"**

**11. Into the Dark**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

Once they had finished eating what they would eat off the plates set before them, Rose had one thing in mind. The Doctor had been gone a while. She didn't worry about whether he may or may not be alright, not with what they knew about this place, but the length of his absence made her wonder just what the problem was that he had sensed enough to speak with the Queen on her own.

"Is everything okay?" Sam asked. She turned back to him, still in her own thoughts for a moment before she shook her head and smiled.

"Yeah, everything's…" She spotted the Doctor coming from over the man's shoulder and she stood. "What took you so long?" The Doctor glared and she sat back down when he joined them at the table.

"Right, Sam, how are you doing? Good?" he asked their new passenger.

"I… Sure," Sam nodded, puzzled at the approach.

"Not so enthusiastic, but I'll take it. Now, the Mesphorite, remember that problem of theirs?"

"Yeah?" Rose frowned; it wasn't like they'd heard about it months ago.

"Not so much a small problem, I'm afraid, it's more of a hostile takeover of a problem."

"Hostile how?" Sam asked. Having the Queen's permission, the Doctor relayed her whole tale, with Wallis Cod and the stipulations Orielle had done her very best to keep under wraps for as long as was necessary. With what had happened and what was bound to happen, there were little to no expectations for this secret to remain that.

"But he can't," Rose took the revelation with something like assault.

"It's not her fault this… this generator of his broke," Sam jumped in, agreeing.

"He should be the one apologizing," Rose followed up.

"It won't work that way," the Doctor shook his head.

"So then what happens now? Can they repair it?" Rose asked.

"They will if I have any say in the matter," the Doctor promised, and Sam had seen Rose turn a small smile toward him. 'There, see?' it would say, and Sam could see it, too. This was the man he was, as far as he needed to know.

"They need to get the pieces together out of the tunnel so it can be reassembled, yeah?" Rose asked, making sure she was on the right track.

"Yes," the Doctor confirmed.

"Right, I can do that," she decided.

"Do what?" the Doctor looked at her like he knew exactly what it was she meant to do, but he wasn't so happy about it.

"I can't put it back together, that's you," Rose told him. "But I can do the rest, it'll be like a salvage operation."

"In a tunnel miles and miles deep, compromised stability, and the potential for a catastrophe should that thing at the bottom ruptures," he listed off the parameters, and Rose tried not to look thrown, but she could see as well as anyone why he might take issue with sending her down there.

"We've faced worse, haven't we?" she told the Doctor, and she had him on this, by the look Sam saw on his face. "You need to stay on the surface to help the reassembly, one of us should be in the tunnel as well, shouldn't we?"

"What if I went with her?" Sam spoke up, looking to the Doctor.

"Yeah, what if he came with me?" Rose asked, tapping Sam's arm in thanks for the support.

"Oh, look at that, two against one," the Doctor frowned before turning to the man. "You know this could be dangerous."

"You've made it pretty obvious by now," Sam nodded.

"No, but I need you to really think about it. That goes for the both of you," he pointed from Sam to Rose and back.

He did think about it. He had faced his own dangers in life, none more than the last time he'd met the Doctor. He still had a scar on his leg from that time. He'd seen people hurt, some of them his own friends, but he knew why he was doing it, just as he knew why he'd be doing it here this time, and what it came down to was that there were certain risks in life that he needed to take, that he was willing to take, because the outcome was worth it. He didn't know the Mesphorite, no more than what he had seen and heard in the short time since they had landed on this world. But from what he did know, he knew if there was a way to help them, then the risk was one of those that needed to be taken. They would go down that tunnel with or without him, they would take on the risk, so why should he sit back and do nothing? And now, with what he knew about this deal, what was on the line, then it was even clearer that something needed to happen quickly.

And then he was looking at this young girl by his side, not much older than he'd been when he had first met the Doctor. She was ready and willing, but she was still young, and his instincts were to look out for her, for reasons both obvious and less so. He still couldn't let go of the fact that she hadn't been there before.

"I'll go," he finally nodded to the Doctor, turned to Rose. "I'll go with you, if you're going."

"Well it's settled then, isn't it?" she smiled to him before looking to the Doctor. He had that same instinct to protect her, Sam could see it, even stronger in the Doctor than in him. How many adventures they must have been on together…

"Settled. Yes."

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	12. What Are You Doing

**_This is a shift day. _**_There are two updates today._

**"Salvage"**

**12. What Are You Doing?**

_Lima, Ohio – January 2012_

Sam had no idea how he'd gotten himself caught up in this. Well, he did know, he'd had that conversation with Artie after his last gym class, but now he wasn't sure why he'd said yes. Artie was his friend, and he would help a friend whenever and however he could, but this had the potential of turning into a train wreck. Sure, he'd had his own share of random and unattainable crushes over the last few years, but he'd never put in the effort of a pursuit like this, knowing nothing could ever come of it.

But he had agreed to help Artie and, as odd as it could be, he couldn't break his promise. He had to give it a shot. Now he was back in the gym with the rest of his class, and with this substitute. It wasn't like he couldn't see why Artie would be drawn to her. Ginny Harrison was an attractive woman for sure… but she was also a decade older than them. If they'd been just a few years older, that decade might not have been an issue, but they weren't, and so it was.

The rest of his class had noticed everything he'd noticed, and most of them were not shy about voicing their approval of her.

She had them playing basketball today. Right from the start, when she had called for them to split into teams it had elicited a call for 'shirts versus skins,' where they would try and show off and suggest that she join their team. Sam wasn't sure how she'd take it, but she had shot them down right quick, and seeing the looks on the boys' faces had actually been kind of priceless.

The parade of ridiculous behavior had not ended there, though she had managed to quiet them off for a while. All it had taken was for one of them to get back at it and then they were back at it. Sam tried to stay out of it, but he couldn't. Maybe it was because of this whole business with him and Artie, having to watch her. Even then, she didn't deserve this kind of behavior, and he would have stood up for her because it was the right thing to do. He knew she could take care of it, he'd seen it, but sometimes with these guys it had to come from one of them.

When he'd stepped in and made them get back to the game, the reception had been somewhat less effective than Ginny's approach. His approach had first gotten him shoved at, and when he shoved back, it got him a fist in the nose. He saw stars, but he could definitely feel and taste the blood gushing out of his nose. The one who had delivered the hit had been sent to the principal's, while Sam was escorted to the nurse's office by the substitute.

"Alright, keep your head back, walk slowly," she instructed, holding on to his hands to his hand to guide him while he held on to the tissues soaking up the blood from his nose.

"Got it," he replied, his words barely audible.

"What were you thinking?" she reprimanded him. He started to reply, but she made him stop, which was probably just as well, if he didn't want to swallow up his own blood. _I'm not going to become a vampire, am I?_

At the nurse's office, he'd been taken care of, eventually resting on one of the beds with an ice pack. He would be swollen for a while, but his nose was not broken. He didn't regret having done it, though this was not exactly what he'd had in mind.

"You alright?" He looked aside to find Miss Harrison had approached. She sat on the neighboring bed, looking at him like she still intended to lecture him for what he'd done.

"Yeah, my face hurts, but other than that…"

"You know, I don't want to sound like a PSA or a pamphlet here, but you know how you ended up here, right? And don't say it's because some guy clocked you."

"I pushed him back," he sighed, lying back down. "Seemed like the thing to do at the time."

"It always does." They were quiet for a time before she spoke again. "You're in Glee Club with Sugar Motta, right?"

"Yeah, how'd you know?" he looked over.

"She told me about it, so I sort of looked you guys up," Ginny admitted with a smile, and Sam laughed, which made him cringe and grip the ice pack. _Alright fine, Artie, I might as well do this, and then it won't be for nothing._

"Did you do Glee Club when you were in high school?"

"We didn't have one," she revealed, shaking her head. "I think I would have wanted one though. You guys look like you have fun in there."

"We do," Sam told her. "I wasn't sure at first, but I'm glad I'm there now." _You're the one supposed to ask questions, not her._ "So what did you do instead, if you didn't have Glee Club. Did you do sports?" It had made her bite back a laugh. "No?"

"I might have, if I wasn't so bad at them. It was pathetic, really," she shook her head. "Eventually I just had to resign myself to the fact that there were things I was good at, things I was great at, but sports were not part of either of those. I was still an okay enough dancer though, but no sports."

"Why'd you decide to be a substitute teacher?" he asked, and he realized maybe the leap might have been a bit rapid, judging by the look she got. It was almost amused. _Wait, she's not going to think I'm the one with the crush, is she?_

"Well…" she still humored him, and he was starting to plot some 'I'm feeling faint' kind of excuse to bow out of this interrogation. "Sometimes an opportunity arises, and it's not what you had in mind, but you still think 'why not?' It keeps things interesting, you know?"

"Yeah, sure," he nodded.

"Look, it was… I guess I can say it was sweet, what you tried to do. I wouldn't recommend doing it again," she pointed out. "But I get where you were coming from."

"You do?"

"Sure. But now I think it's time for you to get some rest. I need to get back to the gym before things get out of control."

"Yeah, definitely," he accepted this happily, maybe too much so.

"I'll come and check on you when class is over," she stood.

"It's alright," he insisted, but he knew she would still come.

When she was gone, he sighed, closing his eyes. He wanted to help Artie, but this was not going to work, not like this. He needed to have a talk with him, fast.

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	13. An Explanation or Five

**_This is a shift day. _**_There are two updates today._

* * *

**"Salvage"**

**13. An Explanation or Five**

_Lima, Ohio – January 2012_

After the nurse had told him he could go, Sam had left her office with one thing and one thing alone on his mind: find Artie. He knew what his nose looked like at the moment, so he didn't get too startled by the way people stared at him, pointed, laughed, gasped… Mr. Schuester had seen him and asked what had happened, so he'd been left to briefly explain he'd had 'an accident in gym class.' Eventually he had spotted the boy in the wheelchair coming out of class. When he saw him, he froze.

"What happened to you?" he stared.

"What do you think?" Sam frowned, which made his face hurt.

"She didn't hit you, did she?" Artie sounded both shocked and potentially amused, if it was what he'd thought.

"No, but I tried to do what you told me to, and I got this instead," he pointed to his face.

"I'm sorry," Artie shook his head, then after a pause. "So what did you find out?"

"Seriously?" Sam groaned.

"Well, it might not have been a complete disaster," Artie shrugged.

"Look, she's nice, she's really nice," Sam admitted. "She probably thinks I've got the hots for her right now, or that I'm a creeper, but she is nice. But I can't keep doing this for you."

"But…"

"Artie, I'm sorry, but look… Instead of concentrating on someone that is too old for you, there could be a girl just as nice, maybe more, that's actually our age."

"Okay, fine, I made it up," Artie breathed out.

"What?"

"I lied. I don't have a crush on her," he shook his head.

"You're just going to recruit someone else to do your dirty work, aren't you?" Sam didn't believe him.

"No, I swear, it's not like that. I only said I liked her so you'd help me," he admitted. Sam hesitated, looking at him.

"Then what is it?" Artie opened his mouth to speak, then shut it again. "Well?"

"I… I can't tell you," he sighed, bowing his head.

"Fine," Sam held up his hands. "Whatever you're up to, you can leave me out of it, alright?" he went to turn and walk off, maybe find some ice for his nose.

"Wait!" Artie finally called, wheeling around to stop and face him again. "Wait, fine, alright, but… come here," he led him toward an empty classroom. Once they were alone, Artie looked from side to side before motioning for Sam to crouch and come closer. "I am swearing you to secrecy, understand? You can't tell anyone what I'm about to tell you."

"Sure?" Sam frowned, confused. "What is it?"

"No, I mean it, you can't tell anyone."

"I won't, I swear, okay?" Sam wasn't sure if he was irritated or curious anymore.

"It's about… her."

"Miss Harrison? Yeah, I kind of got that part already," he pointed to his nose.

"Again, I am really sorry about that," Artie reiterated.

"So what is it then?"

"I don't think… Actually, I'm pretty sure I know… She's not who she says she is."

"A substitute teacher?"

"Yes. No. Both."

"Artie…"

"She's not a substitute. But it's more than that. Ginny Harrison is not her name. It's an alias," he affirmed.

"Oh, like in that show with Jennifer Garner?" Sam asked.

"Uh, well, I guess…"

"Wait, so is she a spy or something?" Artie couldn't say for sure if Sam was asking this earnestly or if he was pulling his chain, making fun of him.

"Not a spy," he shook his head, and Sam sat on the edge of a desk.

"So she's not a spy, not a substitute, and not Ginny Harrison," he counted off.

"Got that part down so far," Artie replied.

"And you know this how exactly?" Sam continued to entertain him.

"I can't tell you that," he started to tell him, and he could see Sam was ready to bail out again. "I mean, I can, I will, but not in here. What are you doing after school?"

"Besides icing my nose?"

"Come to my place, and then I'll tell you everything," he vowed. Sam stared at him for a while still, but finally he sighed and stood.

"Fine, I'll go, but until then, do us both a favor?"

"Stop snooping?" Artie guessed.

"And if you're going to put anyone else's nose, or other body part in jeopardy, how about using your own?" he headed out of the classroom.

"Yeah, okay," Artie stayed there; this was where his next class was anyway.

He hadn't taken the best approach, he saw this now, but what else could he do? He might have been able to disappear in a crowd, since he didn't stand at full height, but 'guy in wheelchair' was not making it easy for him to sneak about without being noticed. Gemma Lucas knew him, or she was supposed to know him, even if she was pretending not to, so stealth was kind of essential. He needed Sam, especially now that he'd started to use him for this. If it meant that he had to tell him his whole story, then he was just going to have to do it. With any luck, he would believe him. And if he didn't believe him, then he would probably think him crazier than he already did. He still had to take the chance.

He still considered maybe turning to the other person he knew had some very specific exposure to 'Ginny Harrison.' Sugar had spent hours with the woman, hidden away in the library, who knew what she could have heard or seen. Gemma could have told her something in passing, something that would prove once and for all that she wasn't who she said she was, but who he knew she was instead. _Maybe. If I need to. They won't hit her in the nose, will they?_

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	14. We Few, As We Go

**_This is a shift day. _**_There are two updates today._

* * *

**"Salvage"**

**14. We Few, As We Go**

_Near the tunnel site – Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

There were no suits small enough for the two humans about to embark on the climb down the tunnel. Sam was somewhat more surprised than Rose was to learn the Doctor had just what they needed back in the TARDIS. By the time they returned to the site, clad in their new suits, Rose and Sam found the rest of their team was assembled, either adjusting their suits or inspecting equipment.

There were four of them, all of them as tall as the last. They would come to know the two women were called Loria and Olis, and the men Eclin and Roos, and that all four of them were family.

Olis had been in charge of the tunnel dig along with her sons and daughter. Even being that much taller and the Doctor and his companions, it was clear the woman was coming along in her years, and if she looked frail at all, then it was in appearance and nothing more. You only had to spend a minute or two with her to see she was probably one of the strongest in their bunch. Her husband had died when the youngest of her children was still learning to walk. Tried as she might have, she had loved her husband from the first day she had met him, and after he was gone, she knew she would never love anyone the way she had loved him. Some were concerned for her, thinking that her being left alone to stand as parent to their children had left her hard, but she never saw it that way. Her sons and her daughters needed her. That they would come to work with her had happened by itself. She had never asked them for anything, but she was never prouder than when she spoke of her children and the work they did.

Her eldest was Loria. She had been ten years old the day her father died. For the longest time, people had seen her as traumatized. She had been witness to the accident which claimed her father's life, and she had clung to her mother's side for so many weeks, not saying a word. All she ever needed though was to be by her mother, to know that she was safe, her and the rest of her family. Just as her mother had needed to harden for her children's sake, Loria had become determined to be a hard worker, to make her dear father proud, wherever he'd gone. She was the eldest, and she had to set an example for her younger siblings. Her smiles could be hard to come by, and with the years it had become that she acted more of a parent than an older sister.

While both Olis and Loria were tending to their suits, the brothers were much more inclined to verify the equipment, which would bring up the tendency for them to argue. Just as Loria was four years older than him, Eclin was four years older than his younger brother, and he never let him forget it. If it wasn't for that age difference, Eclin might have had nothing to hold over him They had the same skills, the same strengths and weaknesses, to the point some might have considered them twins. To Eclin though, the reality was simple: whatever he'd been able to do, Roos had taken so much less time to master, and he was younger than him… So how long would it be before his younger brother surpassed him? How long before he became of no use because they already had him?

As much as this could be a point for them to butt heads, at heart Eclin had something more important, and that was how much his younger brother admired him. The only reason he had even started to do all the same things he did was so he could be just like him. He'd never had a father, and even though Eclin was only four years older than him, he was the man he looked up to. He had tried to show him this, to tell him, so many times, but Eclin would not listen. Maybe someday he would understand.

"Right then, is that all of you?" the Doctor had asked, once the introductions had been made.

"We've got two more," Olis pointed back, and the Doctor, Rose, and Sam turned to see.

They had seen the man earlier. Sam thought he'd heard them call him Rufus. He was one of the Queen's Guard. He had volunteered to assist them on that day, and as honorable and duty bound as the man was, Olis knew very well the reason why he wanted to be there. She had seen him grow up with her own children, to the point where she might have considered him one of them. He was close to each one of them, of course. But when it came to Loria, it was another matter. She had seen him pine after her eldest for so many years, regardless of the fact that she remained clueless. Now she knew that the true reason he had joined them was so to protect Loria from danger.

But Sam had barely given Rufus much notice once he saw it was not one but two of the Queen's Guard who joined them. There was Mersi by his side, clad in the same suit as the rest of them. It wasn't until she stood with the others that he realized why there had been something about them as soon as he'd seen them. Mersi was Olis' youngest daughter, youngest child. Quickly he came to notice that her presence received mixed reactions. Some were happier to have her there than others. Was it that she was the youngest and thus had to be protected, or was it that she had chosen this path, so much different than theirs?

"Right, now, listen here, all of you," Olis addressed her group, more so the humans and the late arrivals. "We are about to go down. You need to listen, because it could mean your life."

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	15. A Safe Return

**_This is a shift day. _**_There are two updates today._

* * *

**"Salvage"**

**15. A Safe Return**

_Tunnel site, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

For whatever idea they had given themselves of what it would look like once they actually got to peer down over the edge, the tunnel was nothing like they'd imagined. "I knew it had to be deep, but this is… this is very…" Rose breathed.

"You don't have to go," Sam reminded her.

"I'm not changing my mind," she promised. "Just needs getting used to is all."

"Do we have pulleys? Or cords, anything to keep us tied to the top?" he looked to Olis.

"If an extraction is required, it will have to be organized from up here. The tunnel is secure. Do you see there? The walkway goes around. There are levels, so we'll take these ladders when we reach the next," she showed with her finger. "You are smaller, you'll have even more space," she assured him, and he couldn't tell whether she was trying to make him feel better or if she was only stating the facts.

Rose could see the Doctor, standing back as though he was letting her know that he trusted her to work with this team of hers, but that didn't stop him from keeping an eye. With a signal to Sam, she had gotten him to come along with her, walking back to the Doctor.

"We can talk the whole time, see?" she pointed to her ear. "Not the whole time, mind you. We've all got our jobs," she nodded to the ground team, not far off.

"Then let's make certain you can do yours," he reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out his sonic screwdriver, holding it out to her. She looked at the object with awe, then to him.

"Are you serious?"

"Do I look as though I'm joking?" She reached out, taking it from him. "You remember what I've showed you, yes?"

"I do."

"Please try not to drop it down that tunnel. You be careful with it… You be careful with you." She looked back to him; she knew all too well what he was doing. He was worried for her. With how many near misses he'd had at losing her already, she had no real business blaming him. The best she could do was to reassure him.

"There are eight of us going down there. I won't be alone. And I will be so careful, it'll be dull," she slipped the sonic screwdriver into a pocket and zipped it shut, patting at it.

"You come back," the Doctor looked her in the eye.

"You don't want to have to deal with my mother, is that it?" she squinted.

"Oh, don't even start on her," he joked, and now she knew he was getting into a good place again.

"That wouldn't be too good a day for you." She had put her arms around him before heading back down toward the tunnel, and when she'd let go, the Doctor had turned to Sam.

"You're not going to hug me, are you?" the man teased.

"Oh, I just might. Later," he stepped up to him. "You come back," he repeated himself. "Both of you."

"We will," Sam vowed. "I'll get her back," he went on, even though his mind remained latched on to one thought, and the way the Doctor was looking at him, maybe he could see it. Sam briefly averted his eyes, searching for something to change the subject with. Sometimes he'd swear his nose still ached when he had to lie or misdirect. "She matters a lot to you, I get that."

"I asked her to come with me. I made the offer, all she had to do was say yes. But once she did say yes… It's all fun, these adventures, time, space… It's also dangerous, and the danger always seems to find them." Sam looked at the man, looking not that much older than he did. He knew how old he actually was, and it wasn't until this moment here that he could see it in his face. He had lived so many lives. Rose Tyler had not been his first companion; she wouldn't be his last. He knew this, of course.

"Sam?" He turned, hearing his name. Rose was waving him over.

"Looks like we're going in. I better go," he looked down at his suit. He looked like the spacemen from the books, when he was a child. As much as he knew this was nothing to play around with, that there was actual danger, he could understand Rose liking all of it. If you were willing to take the risk, you could do things you never thought possible, least of all for yourself.

"I'll lead the way," he could hear Loria tell the others as he approached. "You keep at the center of the pack," she had gestured to him and Rose, from what he could see, but then he'd heard a noise behind him.

"I can take the rear," Mersi stared over their heads at her sister.

"You stay at the center," Loria refused. "Rufus will take the rear."

"Rufus should be the one at the center, not me. No offense," she told her fellow guard.

"None at all," he promised.

"I am not a child," Mersi told her sister.

"This is not the Queen's Guard, little sister," Loria would not be swayed. "You are out of your depth."

"I am not. I know more about this tunnel than he ever could," she motioned to Rufus. "Sorry."

"It's alright," he replied.

"Enough," Olis stepped in. "Before the two of you come to blows. Roos, you take the rear, and that's the end of it." There was not a word to be heard for many seconds after this, as even Rufus, Rose, and Sam had been silenced by Olis' scolding.

"You walk just ahead of me," Roos would tell his younger sister, and it would make her smile. With only two years between the two of them, they were the closest in age of the four siblings. They had bonded for this, and for the fact that neither had any memory of their father whatsoever.

"Right then, Loria, off we go," Olis told her daughter, and the group of eight formed a line, taking to the first ladder into the tunnel.

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	16. History Lessons

**_This is a shift day. _**_There are two updates today._

* * *

**"Salvage"**

**16. History Lessons**

_Tunnel site, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

They were all waiting; there was nothing else to do, not until the pieces began to emerge. The ground team consisted of near on twenty workers, under the orders of a pair of engineers. The women, whose names the Doctor learned were Jori and Mat, had shown him the schematics they had managed to recreate. "We had no success at all, not until Mr. Cod came along," Jori explained.

"We tried everything, but this was like nothing we had ever seen," Mat explained. They wanted him to know they had tried.

"That's what I've heard. It's good luck then, this Cod man?"

"Our good luck is the Child Queen herself," Jori told him.

"She's not so much a child though, is she?" the Doctor looked at them both.

"The old Queen, may her spirit live, was quite ill throughout her pregnancy. The disease is rare, but it stunts the growth," Mat told him.

"She explained this the last time, yes."

"And when our fair King passed, the Child Queen was crowned. There never was anyone like her. She remains our Child Queen, long be her reign."

"Long be her reign," Jori repeated solemnly.

"Long be her reign," the Doctor joined in. If they knew what she was ready to do for them… _They will all remember the Child Queen Orielle._

X

Inside the tunnel, the descent had begun in silence. All they could hear were boots and equipment as they went. Loria was at the front of the line, followed by Olis, Rufus, Rose, Sam, Eclin, Mersi and Roos at the back. Down one ladder, they had reached the first walkway, which began the spiral walk down to the bottom. It would take them hours to make it.

"So…" Rose breathed out. If they had to go all this way in silence she might go mad. "How have you all managed, since the earthquake?" The question was met with hesitation. The front of the line looked to one another, while Sam looked to the three behind him, seeing their reaction was about the same. The exception to the rule at first was Roos, who was either more of a sport or a flirt.

"Some better than others. We are not lacking and we won't be for some time still. But the rationing hasn't suited some."

"But it works, doesn't it?" Sam asked. "To ration."

"It keeps our stocks from disappearing for as long as possible, until we can restore the springs," Rufus pitched in.

"Never know what you've got until it's gone," Rose told herself.

"Our Queen has been exhausting all available options in trying to rectify the situation," Mersi declared. "Ships have been going and returning ever since we've learned of what's happened to the springs."

"All of this and no one's ever found anything before?" Rose asked.

"It's not like… plugging a hole," Loria told her from the front of the line. "It took our people centuries to truly understand how we were gifted with these waters. We can only count ourselves lucky this problem came now, rather than in the old times."

"There's nothing lucky about this," Mersi called back. "People have died. Better them than others, it sounds like."

"There would have been countless more back then," Loria returned. "Our world as we know it would have never existed. Many of us might never have been born. Do you have more to say, or can we carry on? The more we argue, the more distracted and slow we are." Mersi did not reply, which was as good as a response.

Sam kept looking over his shoulder, to the girl towering over him. She looked different here than back at the palace. They were among her family now, and she was the youngest, the baby of the family. No matter how high she had risen, guarding the Queen, to them she would always be little sister. He was so focused on her that he didn't realize he was about to bump into Rose until it happened. "Sorry!" he reacted, and the entire line stopped.

"Watch where you're going, boy," Olis glared at him, and he had not been called boy in so long, but it still had the same effect. The walk resumed. "Keep your eyes open. The further down we go, we'll begin to locate break offs. They may be on the walkways, the ladders. They may be wedged in the earth, in which case we will need to use caution." He was almost sure this last bit was directed at him.

"Can I swap with you for a minute?" Sam turned his head back and up toward Eclin. Rose looked as well, once she'd overheard, and when she saw Sam move back one rank, it didn't take her long to understand why. She smiled to herself, deciding not to meddle. "I got what you were trying to say," Sam told Mersi. She was keeping an eye out, but she briefly looked at him.

"Thank you."

"Did you… did you lose anyone? In the earthquake, I mean…"

"My mentor. He taught me everything about the guard. I owed him so much. He died, trying to save a family from a house that had caved in. How could I not feel there was no 'luck' to it, even if I knew these people who died and not those who did not die but might have died? That happened, it actually happened. So how are we lucky?"

"You're not," he agreed. She had not meant to open to him, he could see, and he gave her the opening to change the subject, turning back to face forward. It was when he did this that he caught the glint of something metallic, further down the walkway. They had their first find.

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	17. And Elevate

**_This is a shift day. _**_There are two updates today._

* * *

**"Salvage"**

**17. And Elevate**

_The Tunnel, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

As soon as Sam had pointed out what he'd seen, the mood had changed. Loria held out her hand, stopping them in their tracks. "Let's not rush in too fast. The wrong movement could dislodge it and send it further down."

"Roos, call for the gear," Olis called to her younger son. As they approached, they could see while the piece did lay across the walkway, part of it was twisted underneath, caught to the wall.

"You, small man," Rufus pointed to him.

"His name is Sam," Mersi reminded her fellow guard. Sam looked to her for a moment, though as he turned again he could see Rose hiding a smirk. Maybe he was still coming into his own on this, but he'd be lying if he said he hadn't started looking at the Mesphorite woman as someone he wouldn't mind getting closer to. He'd had his share of relationships over the years, and they'd all failed. He didn't know what this was yet, but it would definitely be a first. He had never been interested in anyone that wasn't the same species as him.

"Sam," Rufus nodded. "Come forward." The walkway was not so wide that they could walk along with the breadth of two Mesphorite, but a human could sneak on by, with caution. As the line approached the piece, Loria, Olis, and Rufus walked around it to be on the other side, while Sam came in closer. "I need you to look under, tell us what you see."

"Are you sure about this?" Eclin asked from down the line. "He's never seen anything like this before."

"And you have? I thought this thing was supposed to be from somewhere else because you all couldn't make it," Sam pointed out.

"He's got you there, son," Olis backed him up. "Alright, Sam the Small, take a look." He could still hear Eclin grumbling as he crouched on the walkway, making sure not to look into the pit that was the deep of the tunnel. All they could see was darkness beyond the reach of the lights that they carried, now that they had made it far enough into the tunnel.

Both Rufus and Eclin would be there to keep hold of him and make sure he didn't slip and fall. "I need more light," he called, and someone – he couldn't tell who at this point – turned one on to the area he had to inspect.

"Do you see it?" Rose asked.

"Yeah, I see it. Actually, I'm pretty sure I can reach it."

"Don't touch it." That was Mersi.

"Why not?" He could have given it a tug, not even a yank, and it would have been set loose.

"First, you don't have gloves." Was that Roos?

"As sound at the tunnel is, any item lodged in the walls might damage the structure, we need to make sure that won't happen." That was Loria, for sure.

"It'll be heavier than you're anticipating. If you drop it, then you might kill us all." That was Olis, and her words silenced them all.

"I'm sorry?" Rose asked, while Sam sat back up on the walkway.

"It's like we said," Mersi spoke up. "For now, the pocket is holding without the generator, and if that happens because it can no longer be sustained, then everything should be alright, in theory."

"And if it doesn't?" Sam asked her.

"The generator broke into the tunnel, so where do you think most of the pieces are?" Roos tilted his head toward the wide darkness.

"If most of the pieces are on the walkways and the walls, it could almost be considered good news, but it won't be all of them, some of them will be lying on the pocket, which makes its breaking even more of a possibility," Eclin explained.

"And then those pieces will fall in," Rose guessed.

"If that happens, whether they're big or little pieces, it won't matter, they could both create a chain reaction. At that point, us dying and us alone would be called a best case scenario," Olis told them.

"What's the worst case?" Rose asked. Olis was looking at her, the youngest of them all, and she looked like she wanted to tell the human to run back up those walkways and ladders and get out.

"A new quake. And as bad as the first one was, this one will be even more unforgiving," Loria answered. Sam and Rose shared a look. "Any questions?"

Rose's hand had gone to rest over the shape in her pocket where she could feel the sonic screwdriver. He was up there, her Doctor, waiting for them to send up those pieces, so they could reassemble the generator, and he had never wanted her down here in the first place. But they all had their parts to play, and they weren't walking away.

"So how do we get that thing out?" she moved past the others and on to the side where Loria, Olis, and Rufus stood, so she could crouch along with Sam.

"We need to see how deep it's dug into the wall, make sure it'll remain stable," Mersi answered, and she got a look from her sister; this was how it had been meant to be, with all of them.

"Then let's get on with it."

With the eight of them finding their place in the retrieval procedure, the first piece had been extracted. Roos' call had gotten them the first appearance of the cage. Rose and Sam had seen them set up the pulley system as they were getting ready to start their climb, and now they saw what it had been for. The cage was big enough for them to put in the piece they had freed, sending it zipping back up without swaying and hitting the walls. As soon as they had shut the door and called for it to be pulled back to the surface, Loria had told the rest of the team to pick up their equipment and continue the climb.

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	18. Small & Tall

**_This is a shift day. _**_There are two updates today._

* * *

**"Salvage"**

**18. Small & Tall**

_Tunnel site surface, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

At the first call for the cage, suddenly the whole site was on their feet, ready to work. Unless they had landed upon a whole cluster of parts sitting there together, it was unlikely that they would be sending up anything that could be assembled yet. Regardless, this was progress, and they were energized by it. Jori and Mat supervised the extraction of the cage and its load. Now that the first retrieval had been achieved, the cage would be returned down to the last point it had been sent to, so to save on the time it would take each time. There would still be plenty of waiting to be done, but not in this instant.

The fact that they had a bit of an audience was not lost on them. There were some Mesphorite watching from whatever point they could get to, the closest without putting themselves in danger. The Doctor had seen them, but he was more concerned with another portion of their audience, primarily the Child Queen herself, along with what remained of her Queen's Guard while two of them were down in the tunnel.

Orielle wanted to be close by, to see what was happening, how they were progressing. He could understand that. But he also knew that if she kept this up, she would drive herself mad. He knew the stakes though, everything that she had told him, and maybe this was all she could do in order to feel not so helpless, waiting on the inevitable arrival of their benefactor.

His eyes moved back to the Mesphorite standing by, saw them all, those who simply stared with curiosity and concern, and even those who tried not to be seen for some reason.

He had met her gaze, him down by the tunnel and her hiding up on the hill where they had landed. She was startled, but she tried to keep pretending like he couldn't see her. She was still watching him, he knew. He crouched, finding a small rock. When he stood, he tossed the rock in the air a few times, testing the weight in his hand. The moment he turned and lifted his arm like was aiming to toss it in her direction, she had sprung up, 'surrendering' and trotting on down the hill toward where he stood.

"Give me your hand," he said, and she frowned, doing as told. The Doctor placed the rock in her hand, closed her fingers over it. "I'm a terrible shot, consider yourself caught. What's your name?"

"Rada," she sighed, staring at the rock in her hand.

"You can let that go if you want." She stuffed it in her pocket, which made him smile. "Fair enough. What are you doing here, Rada? And why are you hiding?"

"Mersi doesn't want me staying here," she revealed.

"Mersi ain't here, she's in the tunnel."

"I know. That's not a reason not to listen."

"Fair enough," he nodded. "Good kid. How old are you, fourteen?" he held up his hand, measuring her height. She was of a height with the Queen.

"How do you know?"

"It's a gift, that and I can whistle through my nose, want to hear?" The girl laughed. "You didn't answer my question."

"I did, too," Rada shook her head.

"Even if Mersi doesn't want you hanging around, she can't see you, so you could stand here and be done with it. But you're still hiding. Maybe… you don't want anyone else telling you to leave?" he guessed, and after a moment she gave a nod.

"I need to be here. I want to help. But they won't let me, they say I'm too young."

"They're all infants compared to me," he bowed his head, and she had no idea what that was supposed to mean. "What about your parents, do they know you're here?" He knew the answer before she spoke, as soon as he saw the light leave her eyes for a moment.

"They're… They're dead," she revealed. "Our house, it collapsed in the earthquake. A man, he saved me, but he couldn't get to them in time. He died trying to save them."

"I'm sorry," he told her. "I really am. Who takes care of you now?"

"I do," she stood up straighter. "I live with the other Quake Orphans."

"Nice bunch?"

"Most of them." The Doctor looked back to the rest of them, Jori and Mat and their team, standing around their one retrieved item.

"Do you know what it is we're doing over here?" he asked Rada, nodding back to them. The girl turned her eyes to the team.

"Getting the generator back from the hole so you can put it together again."

"How long have you been hiding on this hill?" the Doctor asked. She hesitated. "I won't tell Mersi."

"Every day," she confessed.

"So you've seen the generator before?" he asked, and she nodded. "You know what it looked like?" She nodded again. "Must have stared at that thing for hours, even from up here."

"What if I did?" He held out his hand to her. "You want the rock back?"

"No, I want your hand." She had not hesitated. And once he had her hand, he guided her closer toward the site. "Do you know what this is?" he pointed to the piece on the ground.

"It was at the top, it was the kind of arm, it went like this," she mimed, and the Doctor smiled.

"Rada, I would like to make you an offer. I would, in fact we would all appreciate your help here, with the generator. Would you like that?" The girl's face brightened so much the gold flecks on her skin sparkled in the sun.

"I would, I really would."

"Good. You will be my own helper today, yes?" She nodded. "We will need to wait for more pieces to arrive. Until then, there's something I need to do, someone I need to talk to," he looked over his shoulder to the Queen in her corner. "You be my eyes and ears while I'm gone, understand?"

"Yes," she nodded. "What's your name?"

"Such manners I have," he realized he hadn't introduced himself. He took up her hand once more. "I'm the Doctor."

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	19. Fought Too Hard To

**"Salvage"**

**19. Fought Too Hard To**

_Tunnel site, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

She must have known he would come to her. She might have sat there, a calm observer and nothing more, but she was filled with anxiety. It had been building inside her, and no matter how hard she tried not to let it show, it was threatening to spill over at any moment. If no one else could see it, the Doctor was not having that same problem. The closer he came, she stood from her seat and approached her guards, told them to step aside, leaving them to speak alone.

"They don't seem too preoccupied," he commented as he joined her.

"They know who you are, Doctor," she smiled.

"Do they know about this?" he gestured at his face, and she bowed her head.

"Not particularly. If I hadn't been even vaguely aware, I don't see how I would have believed you myself." She looked back to the team, assembled around their single item. The Doctor watched her, and it had come to her to call him on it. "It won't be long now."

"They're doing their best," he assured her, but she looked to him.

"Cod," she corrected. "He will be here soon, too soon. And then it won't matter, none of it."

"Of course it will, more than you know. Your people will not forget you. They will not let you be taken."

"I can't have them punished for my sake," she refused. "Already too many have been lost, too much has been done. I've fought too hard to have my reign upturned by a man," she sat up, gripping the arms of her chair. The Doctor placed his hand over hers and she let out a breath.

"Then keep fighting," he told her; he knew she would. "Is there someone now?"

"Someone?" she turned to him.

"A would-be King by your side, one of your choice?"

"Are you offering, Doctor?" it brought a smirk back to her face.

"I'd be a poor king and a worse husband," he warned her.

"No worse than Wallis Cod," she promised him. "I know I will have to marry someday, to carry on the line, but with our present situation, the time has not been ideal for… courting."

"There'll be time when the springs are restored. Word of advice, keep an eye on those heirs. If they're anything like their mother, they'll have a tendency to wander off with strangers."

"I didn't wander off," she scoffed.

"Didn't you now?" he gave her a look.

"Is your memory so short, Doctor?"

"Hardly."

"Then you'll remember, they were the ones to take me to see this ship of yours, your friends. 'Bigger on the inside,' one of them said, and I didn't believe her. The other one, she didn't think it was such a good idea, as I recall, but they let me see anyhow."

"And did they tell you that you could play with the controls?" he asked, sounding almost as though he'd be addressing the child she had been at the time. The small embarrassed smile she gave back was more than appropriate as response.

"They were arguing, I didn't want to intrude, and queen or not, I was a child. It was an impressive array. Only when you came along, my hand slipped," she could still remember it. "Next thing I knew, the doors were shut and the whole place began to shake.

"You were lucky. With where we ended up, things could have been worse off than they were."

"I remember. They'd said you'd lost someone," she spoke solemnly, and for what little he attempted to show, she could see more than he'd let on, just as he'd done with her.

"Yes," he confirmed. Orielle looked back toward the tunnel.

"I suppose in all this time, how many times you've changed your face, you'll have found others to travel with, like Rose, and Sam."

"I did," he replied. "Only met Sam today," he revealed. "He just sort of happened into this trip, same as you did."

"Can't imagine there's any point to ask what happened to them, to all of them. You're a time traveller, they'll be alive or dead, wherever you go. You'll have seen a time after I'm long gone."

"If you're wondering whether or not I can tell you how this day ended…"

"No, of course not," she stopped him. "Far from it. You're still here. Still standing. I can only admire you."

"You can do better," he insisted, and they remained silent for a while, watching the crew. Jori and Mat were showing Rada their tools.

"Accident or no, that day was one of the best in my life. To see a new sky above me, new ground underneath my feet, all those people…"

"Even though you had to stay hidden under a hood the entire time."

"For the first time, I saw that there was so much more out there than anything I'd ever imagined, and that was only… one world, out of so many, out of the whole of time. I had to think, how much I could see, and it wouldn't even scrape the surface of what was out there."

"It's a miracle I got you to come back then," he remarked, and she smiled.

"No," she shook her head. "Actually, it helped me to return here, that and what you'd told me. As wonderful as it was, I loved my world. I feel about Mesphoria now the same way I felt then, and I wouldn't give it away for a chance to see everything else." She lowered her head, and he didn't think she would cry… not on the outside.

"Orielle, you are not just the Queen, you are their Queen. They will see you through this. You have no need to bear this alone."

"I'm not," she returned a thankful smile to him. "I've got you, Doctor."

"It's a start," he agreed.

"The girl, you'll look out for her, won't you?"

"Rada? Terrible shame, what happened with her family."

"She wasn't the only one. I look at her now, and I wonder how many more could end up like her if we don't pull through. And then I wonder how many will get to keep their families if we do, and if I honor the deal with Cod."

"How long before he comes?"

"Not enough. Just not enough."

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	20. One Single Request

**"Salvage"**

**20. One Single Request**

_Lima, Ohio – January 2012_

"_So that substitute is back, Miss Harrison?"_

"_Yeah, I know, we…"_

"_You two hung out a lot last time she was here, didn't you?"_

"_I worked in the library with her for extra credit, you already know th…"_

"_Have you talked to her since she's been back?"_

"_No, not really. But she's a teacher."_

"_But you spent a lot of time together."_

"_I spend a lot of time with all my teachers. Because they're my teachers."_

"_I just figured you two had become like friends or something."_

X

She wasn't nearly as awkward as she'd once been about this. Even the jumps from one place to the other hardly phased her anymore. This was merely what her life was at the moment, as she helped the Doctor with this one very long task that needed doing. This was not to say that she wasn't nervous anymore. Every step that she took in this school, she knew she could say or do something that would completely throw off the…

"Miss Harrison!"

She paused and looked over her shoulder to see who had called to her. _Padra._

"Sugar, hello," she smiled at her, letting the girl catch up to her. "How've you been?"

"Christmas was good, we went on vacation, I skied, almost broke my leg but didn't. Classes are boring now." Gemma chuckled.

"I've never been skiing," she told the girl. _Actually I have, just not on Earth._

"Is your apartment all fixed up now?"

"Yes, it's good," Gemma smiled. "It's bordering on cozy."

The Doctor would have set her up with a lot more if she hadn't said a thing, but Gemma had gone against it. If she got too comfortable, then she'd forget why she was here, and none of them could afford this. She had joked that this would be her chance to finally read all those classics she'd never gotten around to reading, which had come back to bite her, when the first morning of her post-home economics assignment had started with a delivery of three boxes full of those books. _Thanks, Doctor._ She had made her way through the first box with only one or two books to spare by the time the new posting came along.

"So you don't have to keep running around anymore?" Sugar asked.

"Not really, no, I guess I don't." _Or I'm just getting better at timing my returns._ "Maybe I should have waited until now for our project, right?"

"Maybe," Sugar shrugged, then gasped. "But you're here now."

"Yes, I am," Gemma wasn't sure what she was getting at, though she had a feeling she did know.

"You should come by and check out the Glee Club."

"I don't know if that's…"

"No, but it is. You said you checked us out, didn't you?"

"I did say that."

"And you know about music, it'll be fun, you'll see. Please?" Seeing her so excited, it was hard not to laugh. But she had to think this through.

She knew what she was meant to do here at McKinley. She hadn't really understood it at first, but that was all for the Doctor, letting her figure it out for herself. Nothing had been left to chance, but then there were variables, and she would find them all in that choir room.

"I'll tell you what. I'll check my schedule, I'll think about it, and then I'll see with your director. I'm not making any promises if I don't know whether or not I'll be able to keep them."

"Okay, that could work," Sugar smiled.

"You should probably be getting to class now," Gemma looked at her watch. "I should be going, too."

"Right, okay. Later, Miss Harrison," Sugar went on her way, and Gemma watched her go. Sometimes she wondered about her, this girl who had been born so far from Earth, years and years from now, living here and now. Did she still think about her home, the parents she had lost? How long had it been since she'd thought of the Doctor?

She did want to go and check out the Glee Club, if she was going to be honest with herself. Having to be so focused on them all, curious by nature as she was, she couldn't not wonder about them, in that room. Some of them had met the Doctor long ago, some not so long ago. Some would meet the Doctor soon, and others would have to wait several years still. _Actually they would all meet the Doctor in the matter of months, but it would hardly be over._

But she was playing a part, being here. She was supposed to be Ginny Harrison, not Gemma Lucas. She might have slipped, telling Sugar about Juilliard, but she feared if she walked into that room her mask would begin to slip, and they would see the real her underneath. Like she'd told Sugar, she would need to think about it.

X

Artie had watched the entire exchange from down the hall. He couldn't get close enough to hear, but he could catch a handful of words by looking at their lips, and the rest was all to gauged on gestures, postures, and expressions. There had been some small talk, and then Sugar had looked like she'd gotten an idea, and he was almost sure she'd offered for the substitute to come to Glee Club. _Wouldn't be the first time._ Gemma, Ginny, whoever she was, didn't look like she'd said yes or no, and then they'd parted ways. Artie was careful, so not to be spotted.

When she was on her own, thinking to herself, it was almost too easy for him to see. This was Gemma, the one he'd met as a kid, with the Doctor. He had to get to the bottom of it.

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	21. And Then There Were

**"Salvage"**

**21. And Then There Were**

_Inside the tunnel, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

They had been climbing down for an hour, near to pausing for a few minutes, but then Rose had seen something. "Everyone, shine your lights this way," she guided with her own light, and with the eight lights they were able to confirm that she'd seen what she thought she saw. There were several small pieces, laid across a long stretch of the walkway not far ahead of them.

"We can't go all at once," Loria warned.

"I'll go," Roos volunteered.

"I'll help," Sam told him. "Rose?" he looked to her.

"Sure, alright."

"Be careful," Olis warned.

Sam and Rose were able to slip by among the pieces, to reach the end of the trail, the better to start passing what they gathered up to the rest of the team, who had called down the cage from the last point it had stopped and get everything safely inside.

"What do you suppose this part does?" Rose asked Sam as she picked up a heavy piece of metal.

"No idea," he told her. "But the Doctor and the others, they'll know, won't they?"

"I know they will," Rose nodded, passing the part to him, so he could pass it to Roos, and on to the others who would get it into the cage.

"You do?"

"Maybe not know in the sense that I know they… will… But I know that they can do it, and I believe in that," she clarified.

"Right, got it."

The last of the pieces had been locked up in the cage, and Eclin gave the call for it to be pulled back up to the surface. Once it was gone, there was a new air of accomplishment. "And now we can pause," he declared. With how cautious they were all meant to be, Sam and Rose couldn't hide they were nervous at the sight of the Mesphorite sitting on the walkway, legs dangling over the edge, but in the end they had to trust and do the same.

"Feels like we should be singing," Rose commented.

"Too bad I left my guitar back home," Sam chuckled.

"You play?" she asked. "I mean, obviously you do if you've got one."

"What's a… guitar?" Mersi asked, and the two humans had a laugh. "What?" she didn't understand.

"It's a musical instrument," Sam told her.

"And for that you had to laugh?" Mersi asked, sounding slightly wounded.

"I'm sorry," Sam told her. "I guess I'm not used to this, to people not knowing what a guitar is."

"I bet you could show him a hundred things he's never seen," Rose told the Mesphorite girl, looking back to Sam. _Was that really necessary?_ He hadn't expected feeling so nervous around her, for this, but now here they were.

"I don't doubt it," Mersi agreed, looking back up the tunnel to the retreating cage. Sam could see Rose staring at him, signalling with her eyes, urging him to talk to Mersi again. It wasn't so easy.

"Hold on," Roos moved to stand again.

"What is it?" Olis asked while her youngest son moved behind Sam and Rose, and then they saw: there was one more piece they hadn't seen, wedged between the wall and the walkway.

"Should we call the cage back?" Mersi asked.

"Might as well. Or we could hang on to it until our next retrieval," Loria replied.

"We don't know when that might be," Olis looked to the cage. "It's nearly to the surface now. Let it go and it'll return to us. Roos, sit down, we've all earned a rest."

No sooner had she said this that Roos had gotten a hold of the wedged piece, only to slip and fall back to the walkway with a thud and a crack. He cried in surprise, and the others began to rise.

"Not all at once!" Olis' voice rose above the others.

"I'm closest," Rose got on her knees to crawl over to him. It only made her look that much smaller next to the Mesphorite. "Did you hurt…"

"My ankle, something broke," he took a breath, closing his eyes in frustration, the generator piece still in hand.

"We'll have to send you back up, son, I'm sorry," Olis told him.

"No, patch me, I'll be alright, you need me," Roos sat up.

"Not in this condition, I don't. You'll help the others on the surface, understand?"

"Yes," he relented, seeing the look on his mother's face.

It would be several minutes before the cage could get back down to them. While they waited, Rose listened to Mersi's instructions and 'patched' Roos' ankle, highly aware of being watched by the man's brother, sisters, and mother very intently the whole time. It had been a simple slip up, an accident that could have and could still happen to any of them, but knowing it could have been much worse, even the slightest hurt would leave them concerned. At the same time, there was no one they trusted more than each other, and in a situation like this, trust was all but necessary.

When the cage finally returned, they helped Roos climb not inside but on top of it, using it as more of a platform than a cage. He would hold to the cables as the pulleys pulled him back up, slower than they might with objects. They watched him be lifted away, one less in their team.

"Right, enough sitting around. We need to keep going," Olis told the others. "We walk."

They had walked, for no more than ten minutes, when Mersi had seen it.

"Everyone, stop," she called.

"Stop," Loria repeated, and they did.

"I know what that is," she pointed to the piece, stuck in the wall at an angle. "It couldn't have broken in half, then that means…"

With what there was left of it sticking out of the wall, they knew the majority of it was through the wall. Extracting this one could cost them something much bigger than an ankle.

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	22. Precision Work

**"Salvage"**

**22. Precision Work**

_Inside the tunnel, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

The way they all looked to the piece stuck in the tunnel wall, they might have been looking at one great mystery. 'How do we get this out without damaging it and without threatening a tunnel collapse?' was the question they had to answer. Olis, Loria, and Eclin were all stood together, speaking in hushed tones as they kept looking at the piece. Rufus stood by, waiting, while Mersi watched her mother, brother and sister, knowing they did not require her. She knew this business as much as they did, but they did it regularly, while she instead was part of the Queen's Guard. Somehow, this made her stand apart, not how she might like. Rose could see Sam watching her watching them, and for someone twice her age, as far as she was concerned, he was acting like someone half of hers. It was clear he was falling more and more in love with the girl, but he would hardly let himself go and stand near her or talk to her.

"How bad do you think it is?" he had asked her, and she'd been so busy pondering about him that she had missed the question. When she realized he'd been speaking to her, she blinked and thought.

"I don't know. If it wasn't for the tunnel, it might…" _Rose Tyler, where is your brain?_ "Wait, hold on," she opened her pocket, pulling out the sonic screwdriver.

"I completely forgot you had that," Sam breathed. "Do you know how to use it?" he asked.

"If the Doctor were here, he'd correct me at the slightest of… I'll be fine," she screwed up her face, staring at the thing in her hand, and the piece above them. She felt confident enough that she could do as she'd told, but then there was nothing wrong with a little fear, especially when one wrong move could mean they all died. If anything, a little fear might be exactly what they needed.

She knew how to scan something, and that was what she did, hoping to get a better idea of the depth of the piece and how best to proceed. The results were not the easiest to read, and she glared at the thing for some time, which she knew was bound to get her a handful of looks from the rest of the team.

"What are you doing?" Loria asked.

"It might not be as bad as it looks," Rose declared. "If you just…" she pointed the screwdriver again, and there was a small hum. The next thing she knew, the piece was sliding out of the wall. It was slow enough, just barely, for Olis, Loria and Eclin to ready themselves and receive it. Once they did, everyone stopped, looking up at the hole. "There, see?" Rose breathed. She wouldn't have dreamed of saying anything along the lines of 'nothing to worry about,' or that could have caused them all to abruptly fall into the open chasm of the tunnel. She also would not tell them that the release had been more or less an accident on her part.

"Well, now, what are we waiting for, let's get this in the cage," Olis instructed. The others stood lined up on the walkway, and just as they were passing on to Rufus, he could see Loria's feet slipping ever closer to the edge. He moved on instinct.

"Get back!" he pushed on his end, so their end would force Olis, Loria and Eclin back from the edge. Only as he did this, now he was the one slipping, and both Sam and Mersi had lunged to grab on to him, one getting an arm, and the other getting a foot. The force of the pull had nearly gotten them over the edge as well, but Rose got a hold of Sam as Eclin got his sister.

"Rufus, are you alright?" Mersi called to her fellow guard.

"I've been better!" the man called back, trying not to sound as frightened as he felt.

"Don't worry, we've got you," Sam assured him. Mersi looked to him, trying to see perhaps if the man could be worked with to ensure her partner's safe return. "What if we get the cage under him? Will it fit?"

"It could, or it could crush him on the way, but… the walkway's not that wide, any one of us could fall trying to pull him back up. Are you able to hold on?" she asked, her tone telling him all too clearly that this was not the time for heroics. If he couldn't do it, he had to tell her right now.

"I've got him. Get the cage down."

It had taken a few minutes before the cage could be brought down, and all the while Rufus had to be kept up by a leg and an arm by Mersi and Sam. Eclin and Rose continued to lend their weight to the effort of keeping them grounded, which left Olis and Loria to wait on the cage, with nothing else to do.

"You hold on, alright?" Loria called.

"I am, Loria," Mersi groaned at her sister.

"I wasn't talking to you," she breathed, and the worry in her voice forced Mersi to understand; her sister was concerned for the man dangling over the edge.

"They've got me," Rufus had called back, just as they could see the cage coming down closer to them.

"As close to the walkway as you can, alright, Rufus?" Mersi told him, looking back to Sam; he was as ready as she was. They watched the cage pass them, and it was likely not one of them took a breath until it had stopped and Rufus had not been harmed.

"How do you want to do this?" Sam asked Mersi.

"When I say go, Rufus try and get your other hand up to Sam. I'll jump down to the platform and then I'll help to lower you down. Ready?"

As soon as she'd given the signal, they'd all done just as she'd said, and soon both Mersi and Rufus stood safely on the cage platform. As was to be expected, his legs and arms had been given quite the shock, but he was not injured in any way that might have required his removal from the tunnel. He would carry on and help them as he had done all this time. The cage was raised back up to get them on to the walkway again. Once he had gotten on, Loria had gotten a hold of him. Mersi let out a breath, turning back to Sam with a thankful nod. They had worked well together, and neither was blind to it.

"Get that thing in to the cage and out of my sight," Olis told the team. "They should have better luck with it than we did."

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	23. Trouble on the Way

**"Salvage"**

**23. Trouble on the Way**

_Tunnel site, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

Every time the cage would be called down, the ground team would leap into action, getting the contraption down to the tunnel team and then raising it back up so they could get their hands on what had been retrieved. The pieces which had come up in the beginning could not even begin to be put together, didn't belong together at all. So the best they could do was to inspect them, making sure they would be able to be used when the time came, and then it was back to the wait.

Then when Roos had been sent up with his ankle patched up, the medic had been sent through. The man's name was Pod, and he walked as rapidly as he could, though the Doctor would say he must have been in his seventies. At his prime he must have been a solid ten and a half feet, but he'd shrunk and shrivelled with age, with the curve of his back putting him down closer to a seven-foot height. He could be surprisingly spry still, and he had dealt with Roos, allowing him to join the ground team. He wanted to go back into the tunnel, that much was clear, but there was no way, not with what was at stake.

Already the Doctor had been worried for both Rose and Sam, but then first Roos had been injured, and then they had heard about the incident with Rufus. He needed to focus on the task at hand, or he would be this close to getting his companions out of there and shipping them back to the times and places where they belonged.

At least now they had more pieces, and the reassembly was starting to look more likely to happen. He stole a look back toward Orielle in her corner, watching them. With any luck, they would have good news for her soon.

"Right, then, Rada? Are you ready?"

"Yes, Doctor," the girl nodded.

"Follow me, and we'll see what we have," he stood up taller, and she did the same, following behind him like his shadow.

He would get to look at her as well, still very much a child but forced to grow up quickly. She would observe the pieces which had been retrieved, and he could see her mind working, recalling what she had seen, back when the generator was up and functioning.

"This here, do you remember it?" he asked, stopping to inspect a curved piece of metal. Rada came up closer, reached for it. "Careful," he warned, and she nodded, picking it up with great caution.

"I think this was at the base, under it," she mimed.

"Are you sure?" he asked, taking it back.

"I never saw it from up close, only far away, but…" He took a few steps away from her, attempting to achieve the proper perspective. "Yes, it was on the bottom." The Doctor looked back at it.

"Sure?"

"Yes. You don't believe me?" she asked, almost hurt.

"No, of course I do," he promised, walking back to her. He looked back at the piece, knowing what it was meant to do, only why it would be at the bottom, that was the part that did not make sense to him. "This man Cod, I'm both intrigued and terrified to meet him," he frowned, putting the piece back down. "Have you ever seen him?" he asked Rada.

"Mr. Cod?" she asked, and he nodded. "I saw him once."

"From afar?" he guessed, and she laughed. "Any thoughts?"

"I didn't like him," she confessed, and he looked back at her.

"Is that so?" She hesitated, as though she would be getting into trouble if she said anything wrong. "It'll be between us, I swear it," he double tapped his hand to his chest, where one's single Mesphorite heart might be, as a sign of good faith.

"Can't explain it," she shook her head. "Just a feeling. My mother would say if you've got something to hide, hide it well. I can always tell when someone is hiding something."

"Can you?" he asked. Her face saddened, looking at him.

"Yes, Doctor." He came back up to her.

"And what's this gut of yours saying now?" She looked back to the team and the pieces on the ground.

"You think something's not right, don't you?" He put a hand to her shoulder, bowing his head.

"Let's just keep it to that, shall we?" he asked her.

"Yes, Doctor."

"Let's get back to it then," he crouched, and she went to do the same, but then stopped and stood again. "I don't suppose you'll recall where this… Rada?" he looked up to her, and she pointed up the road. The Doctor stood, seeing a Mesphorite man coming down toward where the Queen was waiting. "He looks familiar, I think I saw him, last I was here."

"It's Councilman Dollen," Rada helped.

"Councilman," the Doctor remembered him now, he'd been a village boy. "Well done."

Dollen had come straight from the palace, as fast as his legs would carry him, the Doctor imagined, though now as he drew closer to the site he had slowed down to a more respectable pace. His chest was still heaving from the effort. He came to the Queen's half-tent, allowed through by the Guard, where he took a knee. The Doctor couldn't hear what was being said, but looking at Orielle, who was attempting to keep a straight face as well, there was very little left to interpretation: Wallis Cod had landed on Mesphoria.

"Rada, I'll be away shortly, will you be alright here?" he turned to the girl, who'd been watching as well.

"Yes, Doctor."

"Good, make sure they keep working, don't let them get distracted."

"There's something else, isn't there? With Mr. Cod?" she guessed, and he came up to look her in the eye.

"You keep that to yourself, do you understand?" As always, she would be to the point.

"Yes, Doctor."

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	24. The One Who Holds the Keys

**"Salvage"**

**24. The One Who Holds the Keys**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

They had made the return to the palace as quickly as could be allowed without running. The Queen running in would not have been received with anything but suspicion. As they had walked, Orielle had asked the Doctor about the state of reassembly. He had very little to give her, and he wished it weren't so. They had not been returned enough pieces for them have any kind of optimism.

"We will get through this," she would declare as they walked through to the audience room where the man would be waiting.

"You believe it," he nodded.

"What else can I do? If I don't believe it, then there is nothing for us left."

If he'd had any expectations for what this Cod man looked like, it was not the one he came to meet in that room. He would have seen him as older, shorter, and definitely not so… handsome? He looked more like a young polished prince than a scientist with such talents. He was no Mesphorite, standing at a height of all of six feet and some inches, and the Doctor would have placed him at the age of twenty-nine. He was stood at the window, looking out, but when the door opened he turned.

"Your Grace," he walked a few steps forward and bowed his head.

"Mr. Cod," Orielle greeted him. "We were not expecting you back so soon," she informed him, with the composure of someone whose worst problem was a touch of rain.

"I hope I'm not in the way, but you see I am due at a symposium next week, and I would be unable to see you for several weeks. I had to come and see how you were all getting on with the generator," he explained, his voice as smooth as he looked.

"I would say we are coming in right on schedule. It is so kind of you to inquire. Will you be staying the night? I can have Ada see to…"

"That won't be necessary. If you'll take me down to the site, I can see that everything is running as it should be and make any required adjustments to improve performance. I only wish for you to see that everything is in order, so that we may proceed as we've arranged," Wallis Cod explained.

"You will have had a long journey, please, I insist. Ada will set you up with a room and a meal. First thing tomorrow morning, we will see you to the site."

Watching the two of the them, the Doctor was trying very hard not to keep turning his head from one to the other, but it was almost impossible not to. Wallis Cod wanted to see his generator, practically demanded it. But Orielle could be as firm as he was, and being the Queen, any respectable man or woman would find themselves in a tough spot. In Wallis Cod's case, he'd had to concede.

"Very well, your Grace," he bowed his head.

"Ada?" she turned to the woman, who came up to lead their guest out. Orielle watched him go, as did the Doctor, and the remaining Queen's Guard. Everyone looked as though they were holding their breath, waiting for him to be gone. After the door had closed, Orielle's composure looked more fragile than ever.

"He's a bit pretty, isn't he?" the Doctor commented.

"Dania, Adar," Orielle called to the two guards. By the colors on her uniform, the Doctor knew this woman, Dania, was the head of the Queen's Guard.

"Yes, my lady," she spoke for them.

"I need you to stay with him. Don't let yourselves be seen if necessary, but I need him looked after at all times. He seems all too eager to see the site, he may try and go on his own. If that happens, you'll have to find a way to stall him."

"Is that wise, my lady?" Dania asked.

"I'm afraid it's all we've got for now. Go, please," she nodded to the door and they went. "Doctor," she looked to him.

"My turn?" he asked.

"Go back to the site, do what you can," she shook her head, exasperated.

"I always do," he went without another word. Once he had gotten back to the site, he found that another set of pieces had been sent up, and they were finally the right ones that activity had picked up. When Rada saw him coming, she approached and told him just as much. "I need to talk to someone down in the tunnel. Where's the radio?"

"Jori has it, I'll get it," she ran off and retrieved it. The Doctor pressed to activate it.

"Who am I talking to?" he asked.

"This is Eclin," the man's voice sounded.

"Put me through to Rose," the Doctor requested. He could hear vague arguing in the background, but finally she came.

"Doctor?" she asked, and he closed his eyes; he was so very happy to hear her voice.

"How's it going down there?"

"Better now," was her answer. "We've found a few good ones, did you see?"

"Yes, just now."

"Olis says we're still far from the lower levels, where a lot of the pieces will have gone. But we will get there soon enough."

"Might not be so…" he sighed.

"What's wrong? What's happened?" she asked, catching his tone.

"Is it Roos, is he alright?" Olis' voice came in close, like she had caught up the radio from Rose.

"Your son is fine," the Doctor assured her. "He's working with the ground team on the reassembly, you can speak to him in a moment, but for now I need you to listen, all of you down there, Mesphorite and human alike. I know how dangerous it is down there and I'm not asking for you to put yourselves in any further risk, but if there is a way for you to go faster, I suggest you do it. Wallis Cod has arrived, and there's every chance he'll try and come by the site today. If that happens, you'll have more trouble on your hands than you already do."

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	25. One Like Any of You

**"Salvage"**

**25. One Like Any of You**

_January 2012 – Lima, Ohio_

He had never asked him not to say anything about his involvement, but when Sam had come into the choir room that day, at least half of them had not seen him since he'd gotten hit in the nose in gym class and they had crowded around him, wanting to know what had happened. All he would say to them was that he'd gotten into an argument with someone in gym, and that they'd fought. He had never said it was all due to Artie's asking him to keep an eye on the so-called substitute teacher. Artie would have gladly taken the blame, but he was just as happy to have it kept in the dark.

"It looks like it hurts a lot," Tina cringed.

"It doesn't just look like it, believe me," Sam sighed, taking a seat.

"It looks like a kaleidoscope exploded in your face," Brittany commented, and Sam had moved away from her like he was afraid, judging by her tone, that she'd try and poke at his bruise.

"Where's Mr. Schue, he's late," Sugar looked at the time on her phone.

"I'm right here," Will's voice joined theirs. "And there's a reason why I was a few seconds behind, I believe some of you have already had the pleasure of meeting McKinley's newest substitute teacher, Miss Ginny Harrison," he escorted her into the room, and the club greeted her with cheers and applause, especially from Sugar.

Artie was more nervous than anything. He had thought he'd heard Sugar ask her about this, but it wasn't for sure. Now that she was here, closer than she'd been in all this time, he wasn't sure how to proceed. It wasn't like she would address them all with 'Actually my name is Gemma, I'm not a teacher, but I travel with an alien called the Doctor, and nearly ten years ago we took Artie here on a wild ride.' He could feel Sam looking at him. Did he think this was his doing, or was he just wondering how he would handle himself, now that the object of his curiosity was right there in the room with them?

"Thank you, please," Ginny had motioned for them to settle down. "I've heard so much about all of you, and someone, actually, two someones…" she looked to both Sugar and Will, "… had suggested I come check you guys out, so here I am. Now just go on like business as usual, pretend I'm not here, I'm just going to watch what you all…"

"Miss Harrison?" Sugar raised her hand.

"I…" she looked to Will, conscious that this was his class, not hers, but he gave her the floor. "Yes, Sugar, what is it?"

"Will you play for us?" the girl asked, indicating the piano.

"She plays?" Santana asked.

"She went to Juilliard," Sugar turned in her seat to answer her, and Artie could see Ginny/Gemma's face shift; she didn't want to have to do this, but she didn't want to make it so obvious either.

"You did? Really?" Rachel asked, suddenly interested. Ginny looked at her, let out a sigh and nodded. "As a pianist?" Again she nodded. "I'd be happy to sing for you if you'll play," she offered.

"Hold up, why does it have to be you?" Mercedes asked.

"She has a point," Kurt piped in.

"I was the one to ask first, wasn't I?" Rachel frowned.

"Guys, hey, don't worry about it, I..." _Don't want to do this…_ "It's fine, I'll play, and I can accompany myself, so that solves that problem," she walked toward the instrument like she was contemplating making a run for it.

"You really don't have to," Will had tried to tell her, but she'd made up her mind now and she wasn't backing out.

"It's fine, it'll be a nice break from gym class." Brad stood back from the piano bench, sitting on the nearest chair. Ginny took a seat at the bench, quietly preparing herself. "This, it's, uh… it's come to mean a lot, to my family, so… I don't know if this is what you had in mind, but here goes."

She began to play, to sing, and as he watched her, Artie watched her, as the woman he was trying to figure out, and as a performer as a whole. She had sung for them the song "As I Lay Me Down" by Sophie B. Hawkins, if he remembered correctly, and he could imagine her face being blurred by time in his memories, along with a hundred other little things, but her voice… He had heard it briefly, all those years ago, but he had a good enough ear to recognize a distinctive voice like hers, and it was almost like one of those procedurals, where they would match two samples and the waves would be superimposed perfectly, only his brain was the computer. Perfect match, one hundred percent, Ginny Harrison was really Gemma Lucas.

There was this woman, who had been of some great help to him in the past, both her and the Doctor, and it may have been years, but he had not forgotten either of them. And as much as he could try not to think about the implications of her being at his school for this long, he would never succeed.

Ginny… Gemma had finished her song, and the club had cheered once more, louder than before, and the not-at-all substitute teacher smiled, humble as she bowed her head in thanks. "Can I go sit down now?" she asked.

"Yes, you may," Will laughed, coming back to stand before his students. "Alright, well, who would like to follow up next?"

This was wrong, it was all wrong. He'd thought it before, but he was more certain of it now than ever. He had to change his tactic about how to deal with her presence, and he had to do it fast. He didn't know why she was here or for how long, and if he didn't act fast enough, it might be too late.

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	26. Conspiracy

**"Salvage"**

**26. Conspiracy**

_January 2012 – Lima, Ohio_

Artie realized only too late that he had forgotten something when he left school earlier: he forgot he had told Sam to come to his house that afternoon, so he could tell him the whole truth about why he'd had him keep an eye on a teacher, which had gotten him sent to the nurse with a gusher of a nose. Sam had arrived before he did, and he was now waiting outside Artie's house.

The thing was, Artie had changed his mind. He didn't want to tell Sam anymore. He might come to need him later on, but at this juncture he might as well have looked to a different ally, if the need arose and only then. He'd been telling himself that he'd been going about it all the wrong way, only he hadn't changed anything. He didn't want to involve Sam anymore, but then there was the problem: Sam was already involved, whether he liked it or not. Maybe he could test the waters, not necessarily tell him everything but start him off and see where it goes?

"Hey… You haven't been waiting too long, have you?" Artie asked as he approached.

"No, it's alright," he shrugged, cringing at the shot of pain from his nose. They'd stood there in silence for a beat before Artie pointed to the door.

"Follow me." Leading Sam into the house, Artie took him toward his room, where he closed and locked the door. "Have a seat, bring it here near the desk," he took the stack of clean clothes left on a chair in the corner and put them away so Sam could take the chair.

"So are you going to tell me what this is about?" he asked, sounding like he had very little patience left in him. Artie took this into account, so he got right to the point. He went to the nightstand by his bed and pulled it away from the wall. "What are you doing?"

"The drawers were stuck, my dad wanted to throw it out, but I said I'd use it anyway. I got this idea one day, sawed out parts of the back so I could slide it out," he did this as he explained. "There aren't that many places I can hide things that's within my reach and won't be found." One by one, he began pulling out and stacking binders and notebooks and a box on to his lap, all of it coming out the back of the nightstand. He brought them to the desk, where folded his hands over the pile.

"Okay…" Sam blinked.

"It happened when I was eight, not too long after my accident. That's when I met them, the Doctor and Gemma… That's her name."

"So… you met her in the hospital? Was she another patient?" Sam asked.

"What? No, that's not… Not that kind of doctor," Artie shook his head.

"What kind of doctor then?" Sam asked, and Artie looked down at the stack in his lap. _Here goes nothing._

"The kind that was an alien." Artie could practically see the word knocking its way around Sam's mind.

"An alien…" Sam sat back. _He doesn't believe it yet._ "Like the green ones?"

"No, completely human looking," Artie corrected.

"Next you're going to tell me that Ginny the substitute teacher, or Gemma or whatever, is an alien, too?" _I am floundering; I am going to lose him._

"Actually, she's human. Only when I met her, she was the same age she is now. I wasn't sure at first, if it was really her. It could have just been someone who really looked like her, but I'm positive now, it's definitely her."

"You just said she looks the same, how is that…"

"The Doctor has this ship, it can travel in space and time."

"Of course it can," Sam sighed. "So what's all this anyway?" he nodded to everything Artie had kept in his lap.

"I only saw them the one time, but since then, every once in a while, I would start looking into news stories, anything that could have had something to do with the Doctor and Gemma. A lot of it seems to be focused around London for some reason," he frowned, "And a lot at Christmas, too. But there were also some around America."

"And all that, it's about those… events?" Sam motioned to the books and binders.

"Everything I could write up. I didn't want to print too much, my mother keeps a pretty close eye on the paper and ink levels, so she would know something was up."

"Do you ever think maybe it would be a good thing if she did catch you?" Sam stood up.

"No, but I can show you," he started reaching through the notebooks on top.

"Artie, look, I said I'd come, and I did, and… I wish I could say this wasn't… crazy…"

"It only sounds crazy at first, and if I hadn't been out there I probably wouldn't believe it either, but…"

"I should go, alright? Don't take this the wrong way, my face hurts, I… I'll see you at school tomorrow."

Artie might have stopped him, but he kept thinking… All he'd done since he'd brought Sam into this was to get him hurt and he had gotten nowhere. The fact that he hadn't believed him was the last push he'd needed to make a change. All the binders had gone back, all the notebooks. The last thing he held was the box. He looked back over his shoulder to see if Sam had shut the door again when he'd gone. He had.

Sometimes, if he should ever doubt himself, he would open the back of the fake nightstand, pull out that box and look inside. Every time he did, it would be the same. His hand would touch the cover for a second, and then he'd pull it away again, like maybe there wouldn't be anything inside and it really would have been a dream. But then he would get his courage up and open the box, and there it would be, there they would be… the three pieces of what had once been the Doctor's sonic screwdriver. He remembered what had happened to it, and he remembered what he'd been told.

_Hold on to this. It might still come in handy someday._

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	27. Then & Now

**"Salvage"**

**27. Then & Now**

_Tunnel, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

He still thought about that day sometimes, sitting in Artie Abrams' room, being told that there was such a thing as a human-looking alien who travelled in time and space with a human companion, and walking away because such a thing only seemed to belong in books and movies. He could love those stories as much as the next guy, and he probably did, more than the average guy, but it didn't mean that he believed any of it was real.

Now, after what he'd seen back there, he could believe anything was possible.

They had gone another hour, more than an hour even, which had earned them one more break. They had been progressing as fast as they could, well aware of the fact that they were now running against a clock, even though not all of them had all the details. They had to mind the need to be careful along with the need to get as many pieces of the generator back to the surface as soon as they could. In the last hour or so, they had retrieved only two more pieces, but the team was growing confident that the pieces they were finding would help the ground team a great deal. The only reason they were stopping, for a shorter break than before, was to make sure that they wouldn't over exhaust themselves and risk making mistakes.

"Can I ask you something?" Sam had turned to Mersi, while she was staring back up to the ever-retreating light of the sky above them. She looked over, blinked to readjust her eyesight.

"What?"

"Have you ever… gone anywhere?" She frowned, confused.

"I'm not sure I…"

"Other than Mesphoria. Have you ever gone to other… planets?"

"I accompanied the Queen, along with the others of the Guard as she attempted to reach out for help, after the quake," she bowed her head.

"Were there many of those?"

"Twenty-six," Mersi replied.

"T… Twenty-six?" Sam repeated, stunned, which allowed a small smile to creep up the woman's lips.

"Would you like me to name them?"

"No, that's… You've seen twenty-six… well, twenty-seven planets?"

"I saw twenty-six palaces, common halls, auditoriums and banquet rooms. We went where the Queen went, and the Queen only went to speak with the people. When they would not help, or could not help, she thanked them graciously and we returned to our ship. I have seen only Mesphoria."

"I'd only seen Earth until today," he told her. _That's a lie, a little white one._ He snuck a glimpse toward Rose.

"So you've seen more than I have then," Mersi decided.

"Even if you haven't seen all of those twenty-six worlds, you were still there, weren't you? You saw some of their people, where they lived… That counts."

"Fair enough," Mersi agreed. She had been doing her best to stay proper and on point, as a member of the Guard, a member of the tunnel team, and very little more, but as they had been speaking now, something began to change, she began to change. She got curious. "Earth," she repeated the name he had spoken. "What's it like?"

"Well… for one thing, people are not as tall as you are. I would be considered one of the tall ones. And we don't have… these waters of yours, or any kind of tail to swim. And as many different skin tones as I've known back there, yours is a new one," he smiled. He could almost swear her cheeks had gone a darker sea green in that moment. "We don't have space ships, not like you might have. Most of our people still believe there isn't life on any other planet than our own."

"How can you be so isolated?" Mersi was stunned, then, "No ships, right. Do you have a Queen? Or a King, maybe?"

"We have a president," he shook his head. "And that's just our country. Rose there, she has a prime minister." She had looked up at the sound of her name.

"And a Queen," she added, smiling. Sam smiled back before turning to Mersi again.

"There isn't one ruler for the entire planet. Your Queen, she rules all of Mesphoria, right?"

"Yes, however there are councilmen and women from the various provinces who see to their given regions," she returned to her stricter tone here.

"You really respect her a lot, don't you? As a ruler and as a person," Sam liked that about her; she liked that he could recognize it. He was starting to think maybe she just liked him in general, as a person, and he liked the sound of it.

"Alright, that's long enough, we need to get moving," Loria had been the first to rise, calling the others to their feet. Mersi had held out her hand to help Sam up, which he gratefully accepted. After the near miss they'd had with Rufus, he believed now more than ever that putting his life in her hands was the safest place it could go.

The group had continued its descent, reaching the next ladder and moving down to the next walkway. "I think I can start to see it," Rose commented to Eclin. "Is that it?" He looked down briefly and then nodded.

"Yes, that's the pocket. We're still far, but we're getting closer."

"Hold now, look," Olis called to her children, Rufus, and the humans. "If that's what I think it is down below, then they're in for a real treat up on the ground there," she nodded as they all saw what she'd seen, a big piece which even to the untrained eye could be construed as something focal, central.

"Then let's get it to them then," Mersi declared, and the team got to work.

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	28. More Than You Are

**"Salvage"**

**28. More Than You Are**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

From the moment they had been set to keep an eye on him, the two guards had kept their distance, but even there they could see it was just as the Queen had feared: Wallis Cod was not going to be waiting for morning to see his generator. He was going to find a way down to the site whether or not it was with the royal escort.

"I don't suppose we could lock him in his room?" Adar had asked his superior.

"Don't think I haven't considered it," Dania frowned, watching the man standing at the window, turning and stretching his neck like he had any hope of seeing very far. "A sleeping tea?"

"Should I go to Ada?"

"Yes, and hurry."

X

_Tunnel site_

When she had returned home that day, there had been a package waiting in her mailbox. She'd gone to her apartment and unwrapped it, finding a box and a note. She'd read the note first, finding only one short sentence: 'You'll need this to blend in.' In the box there was an object sort of cuff like. "Doctor, what are you doing?" she had grumbled before grabbing the other cuff, the one she already knew the use of, and her trusty robe, just in case. With a cuff at each wrist and the hood pulled over her head, she had jumped, twenty-one years forward and miles and miles sideways.

She'd been keeping herself hidden as much as she could, which had required for her to be craftier than usual. A human had a way of standing out among the Mesphorite, which had been of some help to keep track of the Doctor and the others, but it could turn back on her quick. They weren't trying to stay unseen, but she was. It was bad enough having to hide from the sea green giants with the gold flecked skin, it was another to hide from a time lord who at times seemed to have eyes in extra supply. It was one lucky strike that she had something of a cheat sheet, from her version of the Doctor, but she'd been plenty warned that this wasn't fail proof. _Slightly arrogant, more like. _

If this item she had received was what she thought it was, then the message was clear: time to tiptoe out of the shadows.

She hadn't noticed any change back in her apartment, but as soon as she had landed on Mesphorite ground, she had felt… She'd describe it as something like a shiver, and when she'd reached to touch her arm, she had seen her hand. It still looked like her hand, but only because she knew that was what it was supposed to look like. On the inside, she knew somehow… that wasn't what others would see. As soon as she'd found any kind of reflective surface, she'd seen it true. She looked like a Mesphorite, a short one, a… "What am I, thirteen?" she groaned. She guessed this was the only way, as she didn't actually measure nine or ten feet.

It was just what she was going to have to work with, so pulling her hood down she left her hiding place and wandered out, just a bit closer. She could see them working in the distance, the Doctor and the girl who'd been trailing behind him the last time she'd looked in on them. She could see he seemed to be about to send her up to get something, a tool, and she made sure to get to the table before the girl did.

"Sorry," the girl had seen her standing by the table and called her out, so she looked up. "I'm looking for the…" Gemma reached for one of the tools and handed it to her.

"Here, I think it's this one." She stared at it for a moment, looked back over to the Doctor, then smiled to the stranger.

"Thanks," she ran off back to where the Doctor was on his back, working at the underside of the standing pieces already assembled. "Is this the one?"

"Let me see," his hand stretched out, waiting to receive the tool. "No, no," he sat back up. "This is the number twelve span," he tossed the thing aside.

"Sorry, Doctor," Rada told him, moving back.

"Now, don't worry about it. I wouldn't have needed it anyway."

"But you just sent me…"

"I know I did, and that's my fault for being so wrapped up in the Queen, the Cod, the tunnel and…" he stared back at all they had done so far and he frowned.

"I don't understand," Rada kneeled down by his side.

"Simply put, it doesn't matter whether or not we reassemble the generator the way it was."

"If we don't do it, then the Queen will be in trouble, won't she?"

"Oh, she already is, more than she knows," he scoffed. "She's being played."

"You're not making a whole lot of sense," Rada confessed.

"So I've been told," he shrugged before pointing back to the semi-assembled generator. "It won't work, because it was never meant to," he laughed. "It was always meant to malfunction, see?" Rada blinked, looking at him in shock.

"But Mr. Cod…"

"Oh, the little fish man has got teeth like a shark on him, believe me. It was simple enough, wasn't it? Give Orielle and her people the answer to their prayers, only far enough to get her to consent, all the while knowing that within time the miracle would break in on itself, and how were they to ever prove it. That's why he's here now, for the grand finale. He gets to swan in and see what has become of his gift, point a disgraced finger at Her Majesty, and collect his crown. Just like that, he gets ruling power over an entire desperate world."

"He can't do that," Rada sat up on her knees with sudden outrage.

"But he will," he looked over his shoulder, toward the palace. "He already… is…" he frowned.

"Doctor?"

"Shimmer…" he spoke to himself, trying to find the figure again.

"Doctor, they're coming!" Rada raised her voice.

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	29. Queen Undermined

**"Salvage"**

**29. Queen Undermined**

_Tunnel site, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

They were coming indeed, the whole lot, the Queen, her Guard, the maid, the councilman, and of course the man who would be king, Wallis Cod, who was advancing ahead of all of them, with a steady and decisive pace. There was a somewhat large purplish stain down the front of his shirt, which the Doctor would soon discover to be what was left of a cup of tea he had received and dropped, the moment he had caught a whiff of something he knew to be used as a sleeping aid. It had the distinctive side effect of staining purple.

"What is the meaning of all this?" he had stopped when he reached the site. The ground team had stopped its work as soon as they'd seen the pack making its way down the road, and now they were looking to one another, none of them knowing what they were supposed to say or if they were meant to even speak at all.

"Please, Mr. Cod, if you'll come aside here, I can explain…" Orielle had motioned toward her previous vantage point.

"Oh, I need no explanation at all," Cod turned to her with a glare. "This was your plan all along, wasn't it? To abuse my generosity, get what you needed and then step out on our deal?"

"It was far from that, I can assure you," Orielle stared him down with the voice of someone who knew to respect her manners, and the stance of someone who would have rather taken three steps forth and leave a red welt of a slap across his face. "It was your generator which malfunctioned and broke apart, which forced us to…"

"The generator was perfectly sound when I provided it, that was no malfunction," Cod accused.

"No, it wasn't," the Doctor could hear Rada muttering at his side, and he looked to her, shaking his head: don't say a word.

"I regret to inform you, but there was, and it left us no choice but to attempt and…"

"You will be silent, girl," Cod interrupted her, and the smallest pin drop would have been heard.

"You will address Her Majesty with the respect of her station," Councilman Dollen spat at the shorter man. He was much closer to giving in and striking him than the Queen had been.

"I will address my betrothed as I please," Cod kept on staring at her, and again the hush fell. "And as this entire agreement was in writing, you will recall all stipulations involved?" he asked Orielle, and it was taking all she had not to make matters worse.

"I do," she replied. Cod bowed his head, turning to the Guard.

"You four, not you two," he singled out Dania and Adar. "Escort… Her Majesty…" he pressed the words, "… to her quarters, and make sure she stays there until such a time as I decide how to proceed. Is that understood?" It had taken a moment, and a nod from Orielle, but the four remaining guards had stood to attention.

"Yes, Sir," they had responded, two of them moving to the Queen, hesitant still but leading her on back to the palace.

"And lock those two up, somewhere they won't do any more harm," he indicated Dania and Adar.

"Do them no harm," Orielle had turned back. "They were acting on my behalf."

"Was it on your behalf they attempted to poison me?"

"It wasn't poison, it was sleeping tea, the worst it would have done was put you to sleep for several hours," Adar spoke out.

"I've heard enough, now go," Cod waved them off. "If she gets out or is let out, I will hold you four personally responsible, and trust in me, that is not what you want."

"Doctor, do something, or I will," Rada had whispered to him.

"I don't doubt you will," he turned to her. "Now stay right here, yes?"

"Yes, Doctor," she promised, and he stepped up.

"Pardon me, Mr. Cod, is it?" he spoke to the man in the only manner he knew would get results as prompt as he needed them. The pretty man turned and looked at him.

"I remember you, from the palace."

"Yes, well done. Now, I only arrived here after the fact, so I am in no way aware of just what transpired, however as you can see I have been part of a team which is presently attempting to retrieve the pieces to reassemble your generator. It is a terrible shame, what's happened, and I can understand how wronged you feel."

"What do you want?" Cod all but rolled his eyes.

"Just for you to allow us to carry on our work. After all, you will want your money's worth, won't you?" Cod took a moment to answer, deciding to himself before finally nodding and walking away. "Much obliged, thank you, Sir," the Doctor called after him, waiting until he was gone to drop the act and return to Rada. "Get me the…" She had already gotten the radio. "Well done," he tapped her shoulder. "Hello, can you hear me?"

"This is Loria," the woman's voice came on. "Doctor, we are just a few minutes from the pocket, you should have the last of the pieces before long…"

"Cod's been here, he's seen what's happened," he cut in. "The Queen has been sequestered, as have two of the guards. He's allowing us to keep working, but I imagine he's only humoring us to gain more ammunition later."

"Ammunition how?" Loria asked.

"Nothing, never mind me, just get the last pieces and start back up, we'll need as many people on this as we can get. Is everyone alright down there?"

"Your people are fine," she gave him the answer he'd wanted to hear. "They've been invaluable."

"I'll be singing your praises as well, as soon as this is all done, you have my word."

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	30. The Cautious Approach

**"Salvage"**

**30. The Cautious Approach**

_January 2012 – Lima, Ohio_

He hadn't seen Sam yet this morning, and he wasn't particularly looking forward to it. After he had walked out of his house, refusing the story Artie told him, there was no way to know for sure how he would respond. Was he going to tell everyone he was crazy? He reminded himself that this was not just anyone, this was Sam Evans, and Sam Evans could be expected to keep certain secrets. That had been part of the reason why he had chosen him over anybody else, and not just because the opportunity had presented himself after he'd been caught snooping. The last thing he needed was for word to get around that he believed one of the teachers was a time traveller who was good friends with an alien…"

The sound of the book hitting the floor had been loud enough to startle him, and he looked down. It looked like a novel, something from the last century or so. "Sorry, I almost ran into you, didn't I?" His eyes travelled back up and for the first time since she had arrived he was actually and properly sat face to face with the mysterious substitute. He'd forgotten even back then he'd thought she had the prettiest smile. _Artie Abrams, if you go and actually develop feelings for this woman, maybe you really are crazy._

"It's fine, it happens all the time," he shrugged while she crouched and got her book back.

"Doesn't look damaged, that's a relief."

"Library loaner?"

"Old friend loaner," she corrected.

"Old as in age of the friendship or age of the person?" he asked, and she chuckled.

"Oh, oldest person I've known," she replied and he looked at the book, knowing who it belonged to. _Don't freak out._

"That was really good, the song you did in Glee Club yesterday?" he explained and she beamed.

"Well, thank you, that was kind of on the spot, so I did my best. Haven't really had much chance to do any practicing at all, with what I do now."

"A teacher, you mean?" he asked, and she looked at him, nodding.

"Right, a teacher, substitute at least. It offers variety, for sure."

"Is that why you chose it? Because you liked teaching a lot of things?"

"Wow, you guys are really curious about these things, aren't you?" she looked down at her book for a beat. "I go where I'm needed, and I guess that has its upside."

"And that's all you've ever done, all you've wanted to do?" he asked, finding a sudden boldness, trying to see if she would own up to who she really was.

"I've always liked to travel, but I haven't gotten to do much of it. You need money for that, so you need to work, and that's what I'm doing. I could have chosen a more lucrative way of doing it, but I do like being where I am," she assured him, and if she was at all wise to what he was trying to do, her response had been clear. She wasn't budging, not today.

"That's good… that you like it here. Not many people do. I guess I'll see you around then… Miss Harrison," he nodded to her, taking one more look to gauge her reaction to the name. Not a single tremor. _Damn, she's good._

"And I'll see you. It's Artie, right?"

"It is." _You used to call me Arthur._

"Getting better and better with this remembering names thing," she smirked before moving along. He watched her retreat, frowning to himself. This hadn't exactly gone the way he had hoped, but then it had just happened, and he'd never had the chance to think ahead of time.

X

It was a good thing he couldn't see her face as she walked away, just as it had been good that he hadn't noticed the book drop had been anything but accidental. Maybe it was the Doctor reminding her how to watch and not be seen, but she'd been seeing the boy in the wheelchair watching her ever since she'd stepped back into McKinley High with this new posting.

The first time she had been sent there, with the express request to make sure the girl Padra, now calling herself Sugar Motta, didn't remember who she was, all she could think about was that if there was one person in that school they should worry about blowing her cover, it wasn't the girl who'd seen her face for all of five minutes when she was six, but the boy they had whisked away to another world when he was eight. She had never known the reason, but whenever she would ask the question, she would get no answer. But the more she thought about it, with the timelines and sequences of events, maybe she was in the process of finding that out.

She had staged this encounter now, as a cautious way of figuring out exactly where they stood with this matter. So far, from what she could tell, Artie had already tried to employ two of his own as proxies, and even in failure, she doubted he was anywhere near to giving up whatever it was he'd tried to do all along. Did he just want her to say hello?

He knew who she was, he remembered, that was not even a question. The real question was whether or not he would give her problems, putting his nose in where it didn't belong. She might only have known part of why she was here, but she definitely knew that there were some time-sensitive steps to follow. Too much had happened already for things to start going wrong.

_Maybe I need to ask the Doctor what I'm supposed to do about him. He means well, our Arthur, but well-meaning people have gotten themselves in trouble before._

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	31. The Pocket

**"Salvage"**

**31. The Pocket**

_Tunnel, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

The closer they would get, the more they would hear the crackling energy being emitted in and around that pocket. The generator had done just that, generating it, but then it had continued sending pulses to invigorate it and sustain it. Without those pulses it had survived, yes, but then it was like anything from a battery to a living being. It could go on for a while, off the stored energy it had left, but once those supplies were depleted, it needed to be fed again or it would die. By the looks of it, the pocket was on its death bed.

They had made the last of the descent with the express knowledge that they needed to speed things up, and now that they had packed off the last pieces from the walls and walkways, all that remained were the most dangerous ones of all. Those last pieces sat perched on the pocket, like knives in deepening wounds.

One by one they had come on to the platform surrounding the pocket, gloved hands ready to undertake this removal. "Right," Olis addressed her team. "We all know time is pressing hard, but this is no reason to be careless, is that clear?" she looked to each of them, whether or not they were her children. They were clear.

Sam looked to Rose, to see how she was reacting to all this. She had to have seen things like this with the Doctor before, but she was just as amazed as he was, seeing that thing, rippling, cracking with electricity. But even through that, they could see what the pocket held. If he hadn't known what it was, from what they'd told him, he would have had no idea, but he had to guess those were some of the ruptured conduits. There had been no mention of there being other tunnels and other generators around Mesphoria, so was this all this needed? Like a jumpstart that would course all across their world and fix the conduits, restore the flow of their special waters? That could only happen if they succeeded here though, so when they would tell him to do something, he did it.

One by one the pieces had been retrieved and packed into the waiting cage. They had them all cleared away before very long – all except one. He didn't need to have any kind of expertise in this tunnel and generator business to know that there was a reason why it hadn't been touched yet. He was watching Olis. She had looked to Loria, to Eclin, to Mersi, to Rufus… and then she'd looked to him and Rose. She was looking at them like she didn't want to be, because she had to ask them to do something dangerous.

"What is it?" Rose asked; she was understanding this as well.

"It can't be any of us. We're too big, too heavy, we need someone lighter."

"Fine, then I'll go," Rose had volunteered without a moment's thought.

When she'd said it though, he'd felt a chill go up his spine. Was this it? Was this the thing that had stopped her travelling with the Doctor, so that by the time he'd met them, including Sam's seventeen-year-old self, she was no longer with him? She could die, here today, and that would be the end of it. He had very little bearings as to time travel and changes in events, but there was one thing he knew, and that was that if it came to be that the reason young Rose Tyler had ceased to travel with the Doctor because she had died in a hole in Mesphoria, when he could have taken her place, then he was willing to twist the timelines and let her live in his place. _What do I even have out there that I was able to drop everything on the request of a girl I barely know, to fly halfway across the world and knock on a Police Box door?_

"No," he spoke up, turning to Rose. "You're not going in there," he told her.

"I can do it, and I'm lighter than you," she pointed out.

"I promised the Doctor you'd get out of here safe," he wasn't backing down. "Just let me do this for you."

"Well someone has to do it," Loria reminded them, and they both turned to her, as did Mersi.

"Would you be quiet?" Mersi spat at her sister, sidestepping her way to the man. He thought she would have tried to talk him out of it, and the fact that she hadn't was actually better. "Be careful. The pocket won't bear you for very long."

"Will it hurt?" he asked.

"It'll only sting a little," Eclin assured him. "The suit will absorb most of it."

"Right," Sam took a deep breath, looking to Mersi at his side. The pocket sparks made her gold flecks shine like a beacon, and she'd never looked so stunning. He looked to Rose, hoping his actions wouldn't go in vain.

The pocket must have been twelve to fourteen feet across, and he told himself that if it had supported what it had until now, then it could take him for thirty seconds or so it would take for him to walk to the piece, pick it up, and return, all without running.

He knew something was wrong after he had taken his fifth step. The crackling would vibrate out from his steps, and as he'd gone further, he could see… he was going deeper, and so were the cracks. He was walking across a lake frozen over by winter, and the ice was breaking. _Just a couple more steps, take it, and run. No matter what, just run. Get back to her._

He hadn't even managed to take a seventh step. There had been an ear-shattering surge, and then the pocket had released. The current of the water underneath was a sucking void, and he was going in.

All he remembered going in was the echo of her screaming his name, and golden stars bleeding further away from his eyes as he sank below.

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	32. On Her Behalf

**"Salvage"**

**32. On Her Behalf**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

He wouldn't have left the site, with how close they were to receiving the last of the pieces, but he had to see to Orielle, now that things were under control around the tunnel. He hadn't left the site alone.

He could see them, all those onlookers, still wondering what had just happened to their beloved ruler, and if there was one thing he wouldn't overlook, it was their loyalty to her. So he had asked them very plainly if they would follow him, to help ensure her freedom. There was a veritable crowd on his heels as he marched for the palace again, and when they would arrive, one by one they would demand an audience with this Mr. Cod. The Doctor needed the man occupied, and the Mesphorite could not be turned away, not if he didn't want a rebellion on his hands so soon. So he would sit and listen to them, one by one as they begged for Orielle's release, stating her qualities, her accomplishments, anything that might help to create the time the Doctor needed.

Once he was satisfied the man was properly too bored to care, the Doctor slipped up the stairs. He thought perhaps the four remaining guards, with the threat already hanging over their heads should the Queen do anything resembling an escape, would stand in his way. If anything, they made his passage easier. The last hurdle for him to cross was not a guard, but an old Mesphorite maid and former nanny.

"Ada, I need to speak with her."

"I remember you now," she pointed a crooked green finger at him. "I didn't really believe it at first, changing faces and all that. But I recognize you now."

"What gave it away?" he tried not to look like he was smiling.

"Certainly not the clothes. At least you've stopped with this shrubbery nonsense," she scoffed.

"It wasn't shrub… Never mind that, now let me through."

"Don't think I've forgotten about the last time, taking her off to who knows where," Ada crossed her arms; who needed a guard when you had her?

"It was Earth, and it was an accident." _Never let her hear me say that, I'll never hear the end of it._ "We're doing everything we can to get this matter settled. There are better uses for someone like you than to stand in my way."

"And what's that, exactly?" she asked, not willing to be swept aside.

"Keep an eye on the crowd downstairs, make sure they are able to keep that man cornered as long as necessary." She had caught on to his tone, and he saw the spark in her eyes. "If anyone can do it, that's you, Ada," he tapped her shoulder.

"That little man's got another thing coming. Do you know, he has more carry luggage than clothes? Do you reckon he needs all that to keep his face and hair in the right place?"

"Oh, Ada, we could be such great friends," he sent her off, thinking for a moment as he looked to the stairs before finally knocking at Orielle's door.

She had shed the long dress for a lighter garment, unpinned her long dark hair to unfurl down her back. Even as a child, she would go on about how she needed to let it down to let herself think sometimes. To him, what she looked like now, was someone on the verge of giving up.

"He'll be starting on the wedding by now," she had spoken without turning from the window. "Our contract has given him some power, but it will only get him so far, until we are officially wed, and then what do you suppose will happen?" she looked to him, the wise little ruler.

"He still needs you."

"He really doesn't. He'll say it was an accident," she shrugged, then chuckled. "Is that ironic?"

"Your people are here to defend you. Right now, they stand, down below, pleading your case for Cod." She shook her head, coming up to him.

"Send them away, do it now. My life is mine, but theirs isn't, and I won't risk them for my sake. He's revealing himself slowly still, but I assure you, he will hurt them if he believes it will help him keep both hands on Mesphoria."

"They may be your people, Orielle, but you are their Queen. They came here of their own will, and they will not leave you to the wolves. You need to accept their help, as you did mine." She wanted to argue back, but there was no point. She couldn't go anywhere, knowing the blame would go on her guards, and she wasn't going to get the Doctor to change his mind. "There's something else you'll want to know."

"I'm not sure I will," she turned back to her window, holding to the ledge with both hands for support. _Don't break now, this is where you get your strength back._

"It's a scam. The entire thing. Cod, the generator, the incident," he came to stand next to her.

"A scam how?" she blinked, looking at him.

"The generator was rigged to break, it wasn't going to work. He's lying to you." She frowned, taking the statement in.

"But… it worked, it generated the pocket…"

"Oh, it can work, that much I can promise, with the right parts. You just don't have them." The fury had returned in her heart like a kindled flame. "This is your world, your father's world, and all of your ancestors'. The trout isn't getting his hands on it."

"Trout?" her smirk returned. "I'll need to get changed," she looked to the dress on her bed.

"Do yourself a favor, leave the hair down."

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	33. Surfacing

**"Salvage"**

**33. Surfacing**

_Tunnel, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

If it wasn't for the loud rushing sounds of the whirlpool caused by the pocket rupture, the tunnel would have been standing in silence, as the team continued to stand around the walkway, one member short.

It had been minutes since they'd watched Sam get sucked in and out of sight.

There hadn't been time to pull him away before it happened. He'd gone in at the same time they realized he was about to go in. It had taken both Rufus and Eclin to keep Mersi from pitching forward to try and grab him. There was no point. He'd be gone before the tips of her fingers broke through the water, and then she'd get sucked in, too. Now the only thing they could hope for, as unlikely as they knew it to be, was that Sam would manage to swim back up.

Rose had felt her breath leave her when she watched the man disappear into the rushing waters. It wasn't even that it could have been her getting pulled in there, although it was probably part of it, but… She'd known this man for all of a few hours, but he had gone up there in order to protect her, and then this had happened. It wasn't her fault, she knew, but there was still something of guilt in her. They were powerless, and she couldn't stand that most of all. They were so far below the surface, and all she had was a sonic screwdriver that couldn't help her at the moment, not so far as she knew how to use it.

"It's been too long," Loria had to raise her voice to be heard. "He's dead," she declared.

"We're not leaving!" Mersi shouted at her. Loria came to her, putting her arms around her younger sister.

"The water will begin to rise, we'll get pulled in, do you understand?" she spoke to her, keeping her calm. "I'm sorry, we need to go," she tried to comfort her sister.

"No… No, I'm going in after him," Mersi decided, trying to step from her. Loria had seen this coming, and she kept a hold on her.

"Mersi, you can't. We're not losing you today, and if you go, I'll have to go, and so will they," she nodded to their mother, their brother, and Rufus. "How many people have to die in here today?"

Their ears were already swarmed with the sound of the water, but then they heard something else: a thud, metal to metal. When they turned to the source of the sound, they saw it: a generator piece, dripping water on the walkway.

It had taken a moment for them to react, but then they'd turned to look into the swirling waters, looking, searching… "There!" Mersi pointed, and they could all see it, the shape moving up through the current, fighting its way up.

"Get the cord!" Eclin called, and Rufus had the case he'd been carrying all down their descent, from which he pulled the end of the cord that was rolled inside. The clamp on the end was retracted and, the moment he could get a fix on the man in the water, Eclin tossed the end. As soon as they'd heard the clamp latch on to the back of Sam's suit, the cord was unfurled enough for the others to line up and start pulling. "Almost! Almost!" Eclin called, until Sam broke through the water, coughing at the sudden rush of air in his lungs.

"I've got him," Mersi was at the front of the line, getting him to the walkway so he could hang on.

"I can… I can…" Sam tried to speak, his throat raw like he'd been choking, only he wasn't anymore, and Olis was laughing out of relief.

"You sank into the source, small man. It gave you breath, see?"

"That's not all it gave him," Rose blinked as they hoisted him out of the water.

The lower half of his suit had been forced into a tear, from the inseam down, which carried all the way to the heels of his boots, just barely covering the fact that his legs now sat connected, in the semblance of a tail. He'd been drowning, seeing the years of his life flash before his eyes, drifting as he sank and feeling his throat assaulted by the water. He thought he'd feel cold, frozen, but he wasn't. He felt warm. Below the rush of the swirling eddy above, everything was calm. He had to have lost consciousness, for a little while, because the next thing he knew he was breathing… He was surrounded by water but he was breathing. He had no time to understand what was happening, because then it had begun, this strange pain that wasn't so much pain, as he would discover, but rather his legs trying to access what the source water was giving him. He had never seen anything stranger in his life than his suit being torn open by the force of his legs being fused together. There was nothing he could do to stop it, and then it was done, and there he was, breathing floating… and nothing about it felt wrong.

His brain had still been processing what he had seen, what he was feeling, and then he'd seen it: there was the generator piece he'd been trying to retrieve when he'd fallen in. He'd given himself a turn, and to say he had never swam like this was absolutely an understatement. He had gripped the metal, and he'd looked up to see where he had fallen through. He swam up, back into the rushing waters. It felt like trying to squeeze in between two rows of heavy linebackers, but then he had an extra card in hand, a gift of the waters of Mesphoria. As soon as he'd been close enough to start seeing them, he had tossed the piece of metal, hoping to signal them.

"Is that permanent? Can he just do that now?" Rose asked the others. Once he'd been pulled completely out of the water, the fuse had started to reverse. Eclin had thought fast enough to take his jacket off and let Sam cover himself up with it.

"I said I'd get it, didn't I?" he sat up, and the next thing he felt was Mersi's hand across his face. It startled him and he looked at her, confused.

"Don't… I thought you were…" she bowed her head, and when he'd gotten her to look up again he had all of two seconds to see that she was crying, and the next thing he felt were Mersi's lips on his.

"I won't do it again, I swear," he told her with a stunned smile.

"We need to get out of here now," Olis called them all back to attention. "We have work to get done, and if we stay here much longer we'll all get pulled in."

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	34. If You Will See

**"Salvage"**

**34. If You Will See**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

There was still a substantial amount of people waiting for an audience with Cod when the Doctor had gone back to the site, and when he'd returned, the number had diminished, but there were still plenty so that, when he asked to speak with the man, he was told to wait his turn. It would take a couple of hours. The Doctor could see him up there, looking like he would rather be anywhere but there. He had probably heard the same thing in as many iterations and variations as there could be, and he would have to continue to do so.

At any given time, the Doctor might have taken issue with the wait, but at this point, any added time where Cod was kept busy and he didn't have to be stroking his ego to keep him that way was more than welcomed. He could see Ada, standing watch, conducting this little parade without their would-be King noticing a thing. The woman had been a close friend and ally to Orielle from the very beginning, and moments like this one right here had to be one of the reasons why.

When the time finally came for him to speak with Cod, the man looked ready to lock up the next person to punctuate a sentence with 'Long be her reign.' Lucky for him, the Doctor had another tactic in mind, one that had not let him down so far with Wallis Cod. He was not looking forward to this part, but he had a feeling he would fully enjoy what would come after.

"Doctor, was it?" Cod asked, gesturing toward him.

"Yes, that's right," he confirmed.

"Have you come to give a report on the site?"

"At last news, the last of the pieces were being retrieved from the tunnel," the Doctor confirmed. "We are hopeful that the work will be completed in due time." Cod gave him a look that read as something like 'is that all?' The Doctor raised his head, giving a courteous smile. "Again, I can't say how sorry I am that you had to get mixed up in such a problem." One small stroke of sympathy, and the effects were already noticeable.

"Now, it wasn't your fault," Cod told him.

"No, perhaps not. However, I can't help but feel this could have been prevented. Such craftsmanship, nothing could possibly have gone wrong, could it? Everything was there, to give them exactly what they had asked for, isn't that right?" If not for the ego-stroking tone he was keeping, Cod might have been thinking he had been made. For now, he was still going along with it.

"I guess you don't know people, do you?"

"Maybe you don't. I have a feeling… I know them a lot more than you ever will," the Doctor looked back just as the doors opened, heralding the entrance of the tunnel team. Olis led the pack, Loria, Eclin, and Mersi behind her, along with Rufus, Rose, and Sam.

"Mr. Cod, Sir, you are needed at the tunnel site."

The hours he had spent listening to one Mesphorite for the other had primed him to welcome anything that meant leaving the palace, speed up the process of him getting exactly what he wanted. So they had left the palace, the four guards, the tunnel team, the Doctor, and Wallis Cod. As they walked, the Doctor looked to the team. Rose was discreet in throwing him a smile, looking back ahead when Cod had turned their way. The Doctor was going to need some kind of explanation later as to why Sam had taken the time to change out of his suit and back to his clothes when the others hadn't.

The closer they had gotten to the tunnel site, they could see the realization slowly but surely creep up on to Cod's face. He knew what he was going to find when they arrived. They weren't escorting him to ask for his expertise. They were bringing him to see the finished product.

The generator was up and running, presently honing its energy into creating a brand new pocket. The ground team was waiting for them, including Jori and Mat, Roos, and young Rada.

"It's working," Cod stated, just shy of it being a question.

"It is, and it will do so properly now, no thanks to you," the Doctor confirmed. "Funny thing, got turned around earlier, at the palace. Didn't know where I was, and there were these boxes. When I opened them, do you know what I discovered? Metal things. Metal things, which looked an awful lot like the things they'd been pulling out of that tunnel there for the past few hours, and then it got me thinking. I asked myself what would happen if we used some of those instead of the old ones. They could have been damaged, after all. And what do you know, after we made these modifications, it was working like a charm. Isn't that just fantastic?" Cod wasn't saying a word, staring at the machine, and at the people around him, and he knew he was stuck. If he tried to run, there'd be plenty of them to take him down, and none of them to help him. "Ah, Your Majesty, I see you've arrived just in time," the Doctor spoke up, and Cod turned.

As she approached, escorted by Dania and Adar, the rest of her guard, once again eight strong, assembled around her. She stood there, with every last bit of the power back in her hands.

"How was your day, boy? I may call my betrothed how I choose to, isn't that the deal? Although I'm afraid neither of us will be betrothed for much longer," she took a few steps forward, fingers laced together. "I could have you executed for this, do you know?" she came right up to him. "But I won't," she revealed. "You will sign this paper right here," she signalled and Councilman Dollen came forward, "It states that any and all agreements reached between you and the Crown of Mesphoria are hereby null and void. You sign this, and you are free to leave this place unharmed. Just you know that, if I ever hear you've been trying to cheat others the way you did here, we will come for you. Is that clear, boy?"

Cod had signed the paper on the spot. He was taken to his ship, where his belongings had already been returned, and under watchful eyes he had taken his leave from Mesphoria, never to set foot there again.

"Thinking clearly again, are we?" the Doctor had asked Orielle, coming back to stand by her. She smiled, bowing her head. "Good. Now let's see about those conduits."

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	35. The Direct Approach

**"Salvage"**

**35. The Direct Approach**

_January 2012 – Lima, Ohio_

He hadn't been able to let it go the rest of the day. He thought he would, but then somewhere during the afternoon he realized he had barely taken any notes all day during classes, hadn't retained anything whatsoever… His mind was still stuck with that encounter he'd had in the morning, when he'd finally spoken with Gemma. They hadn't said much, and she'd given no sign of breaking and telling him what he wanted to hear, but he couldn't let it go, and he knew he wasn't going to.

By the end of the day, he'd made up his mind and, no matter how it turned out, he was going to do what he'd wanted to do from the moment he had first seen her. Honesty was his last card to play.

As soon as he'd spotted her, he wheeled up behind her, careful not to have a wheel squeak and give him away. She was standing outside the gym, digging through her bag when he stopped, close enough that he wouldn't have to speak so loud, but far enough that he wouldn't be overstepping her boundaries.

"Gemma Lucas?" he asked. From his vantage point, he hadn't been able to see her face, or if her hands had tripped. She didn't turn at all. "Gemma?" he tried again. After a few more seconds, she'd turned, closing her bag, and she paused when she saw him.

"Twice in one day," she smirked. "One of us needs to start watching out where they're going. It's probably me," she nodded.

"Please, stop," he shook his head, and she frowned, confused.

"Stop what?" she asked.

"I know who you are, you don't have to hide it from me. If you're concerned I'm going to tell anyone, I swear, I won't," he tried to sound reassuring.

"Who is it exactly that I'm supposed to be?" she slowly asked, to humor him.

"Your name is Gemma Lucas, we met when I was eight," he nodded. "I know you're not…"

"Sorry to disappoint you, Artie, I think you've got me confused with someone else. I'm just Ginny Harrison, or Virginia to my mother," she went on.

"I remember you, like it was yesterday. I knew it the moment I saw you, last month after you taught home economics. And I knew for sure when I heard you sing."

"Still not me," she shook her head.

"The Doctor sent you, is that it? It has to be, why else would you be here?"

"What doctor?"

"Not a doctor, the Doctor. You both came, when I was eight years old, after I'd had my accident and we went… That time we spent together, that's what really got me going again after I ended up in this chair," he explained, and he realized he was sounding more and more desperate as he went, but the longer it went on, with her flat-out denying the truth, the more frustrated he got. "I never got to tell either of you about that because you'd gone away after, but I tried to find you, for so long, just so I could say… thank you." The substitute looked down on him with kind eyes before crouching down to be at his eye level.

"Artie, I am really sorry that I can't be who you think I am, I swear to you. But I am sure, wherever they are, I'm sure they know, one way or the other."

"Please," he asked again, looking her in the eye. He was getting desperate, but there was nothing to do about it. He hadn't even understood himself why this was so important to him, and now that he knew, he couldn't just forget.

"I'm not her," Ginny shook her head. "Again, I'm sorry. I have to go now, but if you ever need to talk and I'm still around, you know where to find me, alright? Maybe we'll run into each other again," she smiled, standing back up. "I'll see you around," she started to move away.

"I still have it," he called after her, and she turned again.

"Still have what?"

"The screwdriver, the sonic," he told her. Her face still didn't change.

"See you, Artie," she went on her way.

X

Sam had been on his way to football practice when he saw Artie wheel up behind the substitute teacher. He wasn't sure why, but he'd stopped and watched the conversation from afar. He couldn't tell what they were going on about, only that the longer it lasted, the more upset Artie looked. _He's asking her. He called her by the other name, right to her face._ It was one thing to him that he was entertaining this scenario in private, but something about taking it right to Miss Harrison had felt wrong to him. It was clear she wasn't who Artie claimed for her to be, but he wouldn't let it go. The teacher was being a good sport, talking it out with him, and that should have been Artie's cue to drop it, but he wouldn't.

When the whole thing had finally ended, Sam had just shook his head and gone in to the locker room to get ready for practice. His face was still one giant bruise, although it was beginning to heal, so he wasn't looking forward to practice all that much. Now he was going to be stuck thinking about Artie and his whole alien adventure story which was turning into a teacher stalking story. He just hoped Miss Harrison had been straight with him about it. Already he knew it had consumed his life, and if it remained unchecked, then who knew where this alien business would take him?

TO BE CONTINUED (TUESDAY)


	36. Choices for a Life

**"Salvage"**

**36. Choices For A Life**

_The Palace, Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

After they had all come out of the tunnel, evacuated in pairs atop the cage platform, they had called for the medic to come and take a look at him. What had happened to him had never been seen, which would leave them without answers as to what the waters had really done to him. The old man, Pod, had told him he would need to examine him properly when the situation with Cod had been handled. For the moment, there was nothing to indicate he might need some immediate care, so he'd been free to follow the team.

With Cod's ship no longer a blip in the skies of Mesphoria, Sam had been free to follow the medic. The Doctor was still needed at the tunnel site, and that was where Sam wanted him to be. He would let Pod examine him in the meantime.

This was like nothing he had ever seen in a hospital or a doctor's office. Pod had sampled his blood, tested his reflexes, and taken him to a pool where he could see for himself whether the human continued to be privy to the gifts of a Mesphorite. This time he had been dressed accordingly, and when he dove in to the water, the effect had been as instantaneous as it had been pain free. He'd come back out of the pool, finding his legs back as they should have been.

After this test and the results of Pod's analysis, what Sam was told remained half drawn from expertise, and half from guess work.

As was the case with any Mesphorite, which had been one of the greater reasons why this tunnel mission had been so important, the breathing component was going to wear off in time. What remained to be determined was what would become of his binding, what Pod called the fusing of the legs. No living being other than the Mesphorite had ever become able to bind from swimming in their bodies of water, in any occasion where they'd been able to observe it. There was a possibility that, having fallen deep into the source, the waters would have been potent enough to modify him right then and there. If this was true, then there was even more reason to protect the area.

When it came to Sam though, there was no way to tell for certain whether his binding would follow him throughout his life or if it would fade as well. Mesphorite children, already in their mothers' wombs were said to bind; no one had ever happened upon it so late in life.

_This could be forever. I might stay like this, like… her._

He still remembered that moment in the tunnel. First she'd slapped him and then she'd kissed him and his head had spun both times. In so little time, something had happened to him, to her as well, he suspected. Somewhere in their hours of descent, he had fallen in love with a woman from Mesphoria, and maybe she had fallen for a man from Earth. When he had fallen through the pocket, she'd been the last thing he'd seen, in that split second where she had seen him fall and the panic had taken her. She was losing him… he was losing her. But then he'd found her again, and he knew he didn't want to say goodbye to her.

He hardly even noticed how much taller than him she was anymore, and really why did it have to matter?

He had ended up on this world at the request of an old friend, to help another old friend, who was meeting him for the first time. This meant that, the day he had first met the Doctor, he had already been to Mesphoria, with him as he was now. He would know whether or not he had returned to Earth. It was years ago and still he remembered it enough to say that neither the Doctor nor Gemma had ever said or done anything that would tip the scales either way. This was entirely up to him, and the choice he would make would be the right choice.

He'd left nothing he couldn't part with as far as work, or a wife and kids. He was alone. His father had died ten years ago, and his mother two years ago. He had his brother and sister, but he could find a way to let them know he was alright, if he chose to stay… Sometimes it felt like he'd already decided.

After leaving the medic, he had dressed again and made his way out so to join the rest of them, down by the tunnel. As he was coming down the long road toward the site, he tried to imagine himself living here, the odd human in a sea of towering green Mesphorite. He had wound himself into their history and their lives as they had made their way down the tunnel. If they kept silent for too long, it would start to wear on them, so he had gotten story upon story from Olis and her children. The further they went, the better they had gotten with talking to this stranger, 'little man' as they called him. He hadn't realized how much he had started getting attached to them, not just to Mersi but to all of them.

Long ago he had been Sam Evans, high school jock, Glee Club talent… Whatever he had imagined for himself, it hadn't really happened. Now here he was, two decades later, on an alien world, and he had gone and found himself at home for the first time in a very, very long time. And he had found love. Maybe his dive into the Mesphorite source had been a blessing. It gave him another reason to stay.

TO BE CONTINUED (FRIDAY)


	37. The Waters of Mesphoria

**"Salvage"**

**37. The Waters of Mesphoria**

_The springs on the Eastern Shores of Mesphoria – in the year 2033_

Everything that could be done had been done. The effects would not be automatic, it would take time for the waters to cycle back into the springs, if they had done everything as they were meant to. The Mesphorite had returned to their beds and they had slept the night, concentrating all of their hopes and dreams on those springs.

The sun was hardly out when Rada had left her bed. Living with the Quake Orphans was not always the most peaceful of lives. Some were louder, some still cried for their mothers and fathers, others had nightmares about the quake. When she had returned to their home the night before though, all of them had been there, anxious to hear about how she had been right there, helping the team that was working at the tunnel site. She had obliged them, and finally a few hours later she had been able to get some sleep.

But now she was awake, and there was no way she would be going back to sleep. So she'd dressed and started walking for the springs. Some nights she still dreamed about them, how she would walk there with her mother and her father. After the quake, it had been left to dry up, and in a way that was how she'd felt, without her family. She had grown since then, and more than anything she wanted her life to change. She wanted to be more than some Quake Orphan. A return of the springs could be taken as a sign, that the tides were turning for her as well.

Even the grass leading up to the springs had dried up over time, but this morning… It was too soon, probably wishful thinking, but it felt… fresher under her feet. And then she saw it… the spring… It had begun to flow. She smiled, running up to get a closer look. It would take a bit more for it to be back to normal, but this was good, this was real… They had done it.

She ran at breakneck speed, made for the palace so the Queen could be told.

Within an hour, there were people all around the springs. They had this look in their eyes, all of them, just as she'd had: it was even more beautiful than they remembered.

Olis and her team had bowed their heads to the Queen as she commanded them on their work, turning those compliments on to Jori and Mat and their ground team as well, to all of her people who had played their part, to help make the time they had needed to finish fixing the trouble Wallis Cod had caused for them. And she thanked those who had responded to her distress call. She thanked the girl Rose and the man Sam before turning to her old friend.

"Will you come and visit us again?" she asked him with a smile.

"I'll try and make it a social call this time," he vowed and she laughed.

"I would like that. You've been greater help than you realize, once again."

"I could say the same of you. Now do yourself a favor and enjoy this time. Be who you've always been."

"The Child Queen?" she smiled.

"Long be your reign," he told her, bowing his head.

"Now I'll have none of that from you, Doctor," she had wrapped her arms around him.

"Not trying to get me to change my mind about this husband business, are you?" he joked, and she laughed, pulling away from the hug.

"No, Doctor. I'm saying farewell," she smiled.

X

Sam had sensed her silence from the moment it had become clear the Doctor was about to take his leave from Mesphoria – which meant his companions would do the same. He hadn't spoken to either of them about it yet, but he had made up his mind, and so he went up to her.

"Sam…" Mersi spoke, trying to sound casual; her voice was having none of that.

"I need to ask you something," he breathed.

"Alright?"

"I told you about what the medic said, about this thing with me and the binding."

"You did," she nodded.

"So it got me thinking, and what I want to know is if it would be alright, if I stayed here, on Mesphoria." If she had been of human height, it would have been said that she'd looked up, but as it was the best she could do was to look him in the eye as he looked up at her. "If I stayed here, with you."

"You would do that? Because of the binding?" she asked, hesitant.

"It gave me another reason, but it wasn't the first one. That would be you." The smile she gave in response was exactly that. She was saying that, yes, it would be more than alright if he stayed here with her. She would want nothing more.

He could see the Doctor and Rose were starting back for the TARDIS, so he'd told Mersi he would be right back and run off to talk to them.

X

"Can I come with you?" Rada had asked the Doctor, staring at the box that was meant to be a ship.

"You want to leave Mesphoria?" he asked, and she bowed her head.

"Well, maybe not," she admitted.

"Tell you what. You give this place a few more years, see what it has to give you, and if you still want to leave one day, you give me a call and I will be here before you know it. How does that sound?"

"Sounds good," Rada smiled. "Goodbye, Doctor," she stepped back, running off to find Mersi again. She had so much to tell her.

Rose had seen Sam talking with Mersi off in the distance, and when he came up to her and the Doctor, she let out a breath. "Said your goodbyes?" she asked him.

"Actually, I'm making them now," he revealed.

"What?" Rose asked.

"So you're staying then," the Doctor stated.

"Whatever happens with this thing, my legs, it doesn't matter. I'm happier here than I've been, and that should count for something, shouldn't it?"

"Counts for everything," Rose smiled, hugging him. "Thank you," she spoke at his ear and kissed his cheek.

"Anytime," he smiled back before reaching his hand out to the Doctor, who clasped it with his own. "Thanks for the ride."

"The pleasure was all mine."

Sam had watched them step on to the TARDIS, taking a few paces back before watching it start to disappear. Then it was gone, and he was home. He walked back down the hill to rejoin Mersi.

TO BE CONTINUED (SUNDAY)


	38. Life Has A Way

**"Salvage"**

**38. Life Has A Way**

_The Eastern Shores of Mesphoria – in the year 2049_

Her name was Ilsy, and today was her ninth birthday. In a year or two, she would be of a height with her father, but it had been expected; her father was a human, come from Earth and a place called America. She had never seen it herself, and when she would ask him if they could ever visit it, he would tell her the same thing: Maybe someday. She knew the people there would look like him, not like her mother, and so not like her. Her skin was a lighter shade of that sea green the Mesphorite had, but this was where the differences ended. When it came to the natural height of her mother's people, she had not found her own height stunted at all.

"She'll be taller than you someday," her father had told her mother before, and it had made them both laugh.

Her family had all put on its finest clothes that day before they left home on their way to the palace. She loved to hear her mother's stories, about her days as one of the Queen's Guard. She had left service when she and her father had married, but she always made sure to tell her she had not regretted this decision one bit. She had served Orielle with great pride for those years, but she needed to move on and start a new life. She had rejoined her family's work, and then within a few short years had become mother to the girl they had called Ilsy. The girl had been blessed with her mother, her father, and of course with her aunt. Ilsy's mother and father had taken her in to their home, as she had lost her own parents in an earthquake that had happened years before. She had become much more of a little sister to them than a daughter. Now she worked with the rest of the family.

Today the four of them would be honored guests at the palace, and if it had meant putting off her birthday until later in the day, Ilsy didn't mind. She wanted to see the princess.

The Queen and the King had summoned their friends near and far so that they may officially present them with their firstborn daughter and heir to the Mesphorite throne.

X

Sam had been keeping an eye out for his daughter. She was off running around with some of the other children present for the ceremony, while Mersi was off to greet her older sister. Loria and Rufus had rung in their own anniversary with a journey out to a nearby moon. The years had been good for the sisters. The distance which had grown in between them had shrunk away so much he couldn't remember what that had been like.

But there was something he remembered, a face he had seen at two previous points in his life, and every time it looked exactly the same. Now he'd spotted it again, peering out from behind a tree in the palace gardens where they stood. Rada had an eye on the children, so he discreetly walked up toward the time travelling woman.

"Sam Evans," she smiled.

"Gemma Lucas," he bowed his head.

"I know what you'll say, long time no see. If it makes you feel any better, I saw you just a minute ago."

"Been longer on this side," he pointed out.

"Big turnout," she commented, looking at the gathered guests. She could see the Queen, greeting some of them, just as her husband did, next to her. "Hold on, I remember him. He was some kind of official, wasn't he?"

"Councilman," Sam confirmed.

"And now he's King," Gemma was impressed. The heiress, all of twenty days old, was being proudly carried by the once-again nanny Ada, trailing alongside Orielle and Dollen.

"A lot can happen in sixteen years," Sam turned back to her.

"You know it was already something, to see you at seventeen one moment and thirty-eight the next… I saw you only minutes ago when you were seventeen and now…"

"Fifty-four," he nodded.

"Gold flecks, too?" she observed his face.

"They come from prolonged exposure to the Mesphorite sun," he explained. His binding had never gone away. Lacking only the skin tone and the stature, he was a proper Mesphorite man in every way; he didn't even notice the differences anymore, except maybe now, standing with another human.

"Well, they suit you," she declared.

"You knew all this time then?" he asked. "You knew I would stay here."

"I couldn't exactly tell you, could I? You might have done something different, you might not have fallen in love with her…"

"That wouldn't have changed," he promised her, and she smiled.

"You look happy," she told him. He looked over his shoulder, to his wife chatting with her sister, his daughter chasing her aunt Rada around.

"The night before I had to fly out to Cardiff, I wasn't going to go. Why would I fly that far, even if it was for the Doctor, after everything… If I hadn't changed my mind, I wouldn't have them, and I can't even imagine what kind of life that would be. I don't want to know." He turned back to look at her, exactly as he'd seen her sixteen years before. "Where are you now, when you're…" he gestured.

"Two thousand and twelve. January," she nodded.

"Right," he remembered. _Just a few more months before everything else._ "So you came here today…"

"Call it a follow-up," Gemma shrugged. "I had to see how you were doing." Whether or not that was the whole truth of it, he didn't know, and he wasn't going to try. If he knew anything about Gemma Lucas, it was that she had the world's best poker face. "I should get going, actually. Got a class to teach," she sighed.

"So is this goodbye then? For good?"

"Afraid it might be, but I'm not making any promises. Any parting words?" _I keep getting older, and you stay the same, where do I begin?_

"Just… be careful out there."

TO BE CONCLUDED (TUESDAY)


	39. The Spoils

**"Salvage"**

**39. The Spoils**

_January 2012 – Lima, Ohio_

There was another box of books waiting for her when she got back, and she looked at it with a barely disguised groan. This was as good as telling her that she wasn't going anywhere and she could expect another posting at McKinley in her near future. She didn't mind that part so much, but she was growing impatient of going on and on, carrying this charade, when she still only had vague notions of what the endgame was.

Most of all, she hated what it forced her to do, like staring into the face of a pleading boy and refusing him the simple truth he was asking for. She could have told him. _Yes, I'm exactly who you think I am. I've missed you, too, and I'm so happy to see how well you're doing._ Except it was not simple at all, and she wished she could tell him that without blabbing on the whole thing, the parts that had to do with why she was posing as a substitute teacher, and the ones that were completely unrelated.

But this was the way things were meant to be for the time being. She got the whole tampering with events issue, although with how much jumping back and forth she was being asked to do, it was a wonder it was still all as it should be. She'd stopped trying to untangle it, figuring that it would start to make sense when it was meant to.

Now the best she could look forward to were days or maybe weeks until Ginny Harrison was called back into the fray. For now she could stay hidden up in her tiny apartment, be Gemma Lucas and read her books. _The Doctor has the whole of time and space to keep me occupied. This could take a while._

X

She was going to be leaving again. Ginny Harrison's tenure as substitute gym teacher was coming to an end. If she was really who he believed she was, though as much as it pained him to think it he was almost starting to believe her denial of it, then she'd have to be back eventually because… nothing had happened, nothing that would warrant her being here so long.

_Or she's just a substitute teacher called Virginia 'Ginny' Harrison, and you're losing your mind. Why would the Doctor make Gemma stay here for so long without it ever leading to anything?_

He must have looked like he'd just suffered a death in the family. Half the Glee Club had been asking how he was with that same kind of concerned tone. Right now the only thing he wanted to do was to go home, start a fire, and toss in every last notebook and binder on to the flame, even that box. He'd made a fool of himself, poor little wheelchair boy with delusions of time travellers.

"Hey, man, hold up," he heard Puck coming toward him and he let out a breath, turning his chair around.

"No one died, I'm fine," Artie droned on.

"Yeah, mind passing that along to your face?"

"What do you want?" Artie asked as the other boy moved behind his chair to get them moving on further down the hall.

"I was talking to Sam a couple days ago. We were in the locker room getting ready for practice and he told me about this whole thing with you stalking the substitute teacher?"

"I'm not stalking her," Artie hesitated. Why did he have to think Sam would keep quiet?

"Right. Then he started telling me how you think she's going under a fake name and she's not actually a teacher," Puck went on, while Artie waited for the other shoe to drop.

"Well…"

"After that, he was going to stop." _Good._ "But I was curious, so I nagged him until he'd fess up." _Damn it, Puck._ "So he goes and he tells me this whole thing about how you met her when you were a kid, but she looked the same, and that she could travel in time and in space with a human-looking alien. He said you had all this research from trying to find them again, like some kind of conspiracy nut."

"Is that all he said?" Artie asked, exasperated.

"It was," Puck replied, and Artie let out a discreet breath.

"So you came here to make fun of me and call me a space nerd?"

"If I was going to call you a name, it'd be better than 'space nerd,'" Puck scoffed.

"Yes, that's so much better," Artie muttered to himself.

"I didn't come to make fun of you," Puck promised. "I came to say I believe you." Artie turned around, looking around the hall before looking back up to him.

"You do?" Now Puck was looking around, too.

"Look, come here," he led the boy's chair into the empty choir room.

"If you do believe me, that's great and… completely unexpected… But why would you…"

"Well, I don't know anything about some girl called Ginny or Jenna or whatever he said you called her…"

"Gemma," Artie offered.

"Yeah, that. I don't know what her deal is or if she's who you say she is. But what he said about a human-looking alien with a ship that can travel in time and space, that's something else."

"It is?" Artie blinked.

"I saw one of those once," Puck kept his voice down. _Is he pulling my chain?_

"What did it look like?" he had to ask.

"It was blue. It looked like a phone box on the outside, about this wide," he mimed with his arms. "But that was only the outside, it was bigger on the inside." Artie's heart had been ramming against his ribcage from the moment he'd heard 'blue.'

"This, uh… this human-looking alien, what name…"

"Called himself the Doctor. He had two humans with him, this English girl called Rose, and there was a guy, sounded American, his name was Jack."

THE END

**A/N: Be on the lookout for the next story in the series, starting on July 5th,**

**"The Generational Purge"**


End file.
